Antioxidant and Antiproliferative Activity of the Ethanolic Extract of Equisetum myriochaetum and Molecular Docking of Its Main Metabolites (Apigenin,Kaempferol, and Quercetin) on β-Tubulin

Equisetum myriochaetum is a semi-aquatic plant found on riverbanks that is commonly used in traditional medicine as a diuretic agent. Additionally, the genus Equisetum stands out for its content of the flavonoid kaempferol, a well-known antiproliferative agent. Therefore, in this study, E. myriochaetum ethanolic extract was tested in vitro against a cervical cancer cell line (SiHa). Additionally, the antioxidative activity was evaluated through a 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrilhidrazil (DPPH) assay. Finally, a molecular docking analysis of apigenin, kaempferol, and quercetin on the active site of β-tubulin was performed to investigate their potential mechanism of action. All fractions of E. myriochaetum ethanolic extract showed antioxidative activity. Fraction 14 displayed an antiproliferative capacity with a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) value of 6.78 μg/mL against SiHa cells.     

A Multifunctional Chemical Probe for the Measurement of Local Micropolarity and Microviscosity in Mitochondria

The measurement of physicochemical parameters in living cells can provide information on individual cellular organelles, helping us to understand subcellular function in health and disease. While organelle‐specific chemical probes have allowed qualitative evaluation of microenvironmental variations, the simultaneous quantification of mitochondrial local microviscosity (η_m) and micropolarity (?_m), along with concurrent structural variations, has remained an unmet need. Herein, we describe a new multifunctional mitochondrial probe ( MMP ) for simultaneous monitoring of η_m and ?_m by fluorescence lifetime and emission intensity recordings, respectively. The MMP enables highly precise measurements of η_m and ?_m in the presence of a variety of agents perturbing cellular function, and the observed changes can also be correlated with alterations in mitochondrial network morphology and motility. This strategy represents a promising tool for the analysis of subtle changes in organellar structure.     

Application of metabolic engineering to the production of scopolamine

Scopolamine is an alkaloid widely used in medicine for its anticholinergic activity. The aim of this review is to show that metabolic engineering techniques constitute a suitable tool to improve the production of tropane alkaloids, focusing in particular on scopolamine. We present an overview of results obtained by various research groups, including our own, who have studied the overexpression of genes involved in the biosynthesis of scopolamine in different plant species that produce tropane alkaloids. Experiments carried out to improve production in hairy root cultures will also be described, as well as those attempting to biotransform hyoscyamine into scopolamine in roots and transgenic tobacco cells.     

Unbinding Molecular Recognition Force Maps of Localized Single Receptor Molecules by Atomic Force Microscopy

Atomic force microscopy is a technique capable to study biological recognition processes at the single‐molecule level. In this work we operate the AFM in a force‐scan based mode, the jumping mode, where simultaneous topographic and tip–sample adhesion maps are acquired. This approach obtains the unbinding force between a well‐defined receptor molecule and a ligand attached to the AFM tip. The method is applied to the avidin–biotin system. In contrast with previous data, we obtain laterally resolved adhesion maps of avidin–biotin unbinding forces highly correlated with single avidin molecules in the corresponding topographic map. The scanning rate 250 pixel s^?1 (2 min for a 128×128 image) is limited by the hydrodynamic drag force. We are able to build a rupture‐force distribution histogram that corresponds to a single defined molecule. Furthermore, we find that due to the motility of the polymer used as spacer to anchor the ligand to the tip, its direction at rupture does not generally coincide with the normal to the tip–sample, this introduces an appreciable error in the measured force.     

Small-molecule microarrays as tools in ligand discovery

Small molecules that bind and modulate specific protein targets are increasingly used as tools to decipher protein function in a cellular context. Identifying specific small-molecule probes for each protein in the proteome will require miniaturized assays that permit screening of large collections of compounds against large numbers of proteins in a highly parallel fashion. Simple and general binding assays involving small-molecule microarrays can be used to identify probes for nearly any protein in the proteome. The assay may be used to identify ligands for proteins in the absence of knowledge about structure or function. In this tutorial review, we introduce small-molecule microarrays (SMMs) as tools for ligand discovery; discuss methods for manufacturing SMMs, including both non-covalent and covalent attachment strategies; and provide examples of ligand discovery involving SMMs.     

Viscometric and volumetric behaviour of binary mixtures of sulfolane and N-methylpyrrolidone with monoethanolamine and diethanolamine in the range 303–373 K

Capillary viscometry was used to determine the kinematic viscosity of the binary systems composed of N-methylpyrrolidone + monoethanolamine and N-methylpyrrolidone + diethanolamine throughout the concentration range, at eight different temperatures in the range 303.15–373.15 K. Pure component values of viscosity were also determined in the temperature range 303.15–423.15 K. Using a rolling ball viscometer the absolute viscosity was obtained for the binary systems composed of tetramethylene sulfone (sulfolane) + monoethanolamine and tetramethylene sulfone + diethanolamine, throughout the concentration range, at three different temperatures in the range 303.15–373.15 K. Density results were obtained using a vibrating-tube densimeter for the four pure components and the four binary systems studied, in the same temperature range and the whole concentration range for the binary systems as the viscosity measurements.

The experimental viscosity results for the four pure solvents cover a broader temperature range than previously reported by other workers. The experimental results of viscosity for both pure and binary systems show a decrease with increasing temperature as expected. In the case of the binary systems the change of viscosity with concentration for the two sets of mixtures with N-methylpyrrolidone is very large in the range of 303.15–353.15 K, whereas it is small in the range 363.15–373.15 K. The observed behaviour of the change of viscosity with concentration for sulfolane with monoethanolamine is different from that shown by sulfolane with diethanolamine, at 303.15 and 323.15 K; the first system shows a minimum viscosity point in the sulfolane-rich region whereas at 373.15 K it shows values of viscosity greater than that of the pure components in the whole range of concentration; and the second system shows large variations of viscosity at low sulfolane concentration, at 303.15 and 323.15 K; whereas at 373.15 K the viscosity values change smoothly between those for the two pure components.

From the density results, molar excess volumes were derived, which were correlated using the Redlich–Kister equation; the final expression includes the functionality with both concentration and temperature.     

Stability of self-assembled monolayers on titanium and gold

Methyl- and hydroxyl-terminated phosphonic acid self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) were coated on Ti from aqueous solution. Dodecyl phosphate and dodecyltrichlorosilane SAMs were also coated on Ti using solution-phase deposition. The stability of SAMs on Ti was investigated in Tris-buffered saline (TBS) at 37 degrees C using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, contact angle goniometry, and atomic force microscopy. For comparison purposes, a hydroxyl-terminated thiol SAM was coated on Au, and its stability was also investigated under similar conditions. In TBS, a significant proportion of phosphonic acid or phosphate molecules were desorbed from the Ti surface within 1 day, while the trichlorosilane SAM on Ti or thiol SAM on Au was stable for up to 7 days under similar conditions. The stability of hydroxyl-terminated phosphonic acid SAM coated Ti and thiol SAM coated Au was investigated in ambient air and ultraviolet (UV) light. In ambient air, the phosphonic acid SAM on Ti was stable for up to 14 days, while the thiol SAM on Au was not stable for 1 day. Under UV-radiation exposure, the alkyl chains of the phosphonic acid SAM were decomposed, leaving only the phosphonate groups on the Ti surface after 12 h. Under similar conditions, decomposition of alkyl chains of the thiol SAM was observed on the Au surface accompanied by oxidation of thiolates.     

The Parametrix Method for Skew Diffusions

In this article, we apply the parametrix method in order to obtain the existence and the regularity properties of the density of a skew diffusion and provide a Gaussian upper bound. This expansion leads to a probabilistic representation.