Combination Therapy of Carnosic Acid and Methotrexate Effectively Suppressed the Inflammatory Markers and Oxidative Stress in Experimental Arthritis

Background: Combination therapy with methotrexate (MTX) is the most common therapeutic strategy used for the treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In this study, we combined the natural compound carnosic acid (CA) with MTX to reduce inflammation and oxidative stress in adjuvant arthritis (AA). Methods: AA was induced in 6–8 rats per group. MTX was administrated twice a week at a dose of 0.3 mg/kg b.w., while CA was administered daily at a dose of 100 mg/kg both in monotherapy and in combination with MTX. Plasma samples were collected on the 14th, 21st, and 28th day. Body weight and hind paw volume were measured once a week. Results: We found that, mainly, the CA + MTX combination significantly reduced the hind paw swelling, the levels of IL-17A, MMP-9, and MCP-1 in plasma, and GGT activity in joint homogenates. The mRNA expression of HO-1, catalase, and IL-1β in the liver were significantly improved by CA + MTX only. Our results indicate that adding CA to MTX treatment could be a good therapeutic option for patients suffering from RA. Conclusions: The addition of CA to methotrexate treatment significantly improved its efficacy in decreasing the development of AA by inhibiting the markers of inflammation and oxidative stress.     

A Comparison of the Experimental and ab Initio Values of theO NMR Chemical Shifts in the Carbonyl Group

New experimental and theoretical results are presented for the NMR shielding of oxygen in the carbonyl group. The experimental values clearly demonstrate that the solvent effects are very significant. The new results for the chemical shifts are in better agreement than the previous literature data with the corresponding ab initio values calculated for isolated molecules.     

An investigation of the reliability of the Galerkin-Petrov method

The Galerkin-Petrov method is applied to the determination of the ground state energy of the beryllium atom. The basis set of the coordinate subspace consists of correlated wavefunctions of the combined configuration-interaction-Hylleraas type. The basis set of the projective subspace is of the configuration-interaction type. The usefulness of a previously proposed way of characterization of pairs of subspaces has been further confirmed. Experience in constructing close pairs of subspaces gathered in the case of two-electron systems is used for the larger system. Two methods for constructing pairs of subspaces are used in the calculations.     

Studies towards the total synthesis of di- and sesterterpenes with dicyclopenta[a,d]cyclooctane skeletons. Three-component approach to the A/B rings building block

Sesqui- and sesterterpenes of ophiobolin and fusicoccin families are important synthetic targets because of complexity of structure and potentially useful physiological activities, including anti-tumor activity. A synthesis of versatile building blocks for these terpenoids is described. Cyclopenta[8]annulene rings system with properly dislocated substituents was constructed using as key steps ring closing metathesis reaction and Wagner - Meerwein rearrangement. Ring closing metathesis reaction leading to cyclopenta[8]annulene was studied in detail.     

Spectral features of substituted 9-(phenoxycarbonyl)-acridines and their protonated and methylated cation derivatives

The long-wavelength absorption of eight 9-(phenoxycarbonyl)-acridines and the 10-H-9-(phenoxycarbonyl)-acridinium and 10-methyl-9-(phenoxycarbonyl)-acridinium cations derived from them, substituted with an alkyl or trifluoroalkyl group at the benzene ring, occurs above 300 nm as the superposition of four bands. Three of these bands occupy comparable positions (expressed in nm) in all the compounds; the fourth one, however, changes position, appearing in neutral molecules as a long-wavelength shoulder below 400 nm, but in cations as an almost separate band above 400 nm. The weak fluorescence resulting from excitation within the long-wavelength absorption band is red-shifted relative to absorption, such that Stokes shifts are similar for both neutral molecules and cations. Stokes shifts tend to increase with the orientational polarisability of a medium. Computations predict that long-wavelength electronic transitions are accompanied by structural changes in molecules. They also indicate that such transitions are followed by roughly uniform electron density changes in whole molecules accompanied by small changes in their dipole moments, which accounts for the weak absorption in the long-wavelength region. The predicted radiative and non-radiative deactivation rate constants suggest the occurrence of efficient spin-orbital coupling in the molecules investigated, which is the cause of the relatively low fluorescence quantum yields. Apart from the cognitive significance of these investigations, the results demonstrate that absorption of radiation by 10-methyl-9-(phenoxycarbonyl)-acridinium cations above 400 nm may influence their chemiluminescence output.     

Enhancement of the SPR Effect in an Optical Fiber Device Utilizing a Thin Ag Layer and a 3092A Liquid Crystal Mixture

This paper is a continuation of previous work and shows the enhancement of the surface plasmon resonance effect in a tapered optical fiber device. The study investigated liquid crystal cells containing a tapered optical fiber covered with a silver nanolayer, surrounded by a low refractive index liquid crystal in terms of the properties of light propagation in the taper structure. Silver films with a thickness of d = 10 nm were deposited on the tapered waist area. Measurements were performed at room temperature; liquid crystal steering voltage U from 0 to 200 V, with and without any amplitude modulation with a frequency of f = 5 Hz, and the wavelength λ ranged from 550 to 1200 nm. A significant influence of the initial arrangement of liquid crystals molecules on light propagation was observed. Three types of liquid crystal cells—orthogonal, parallel, and twist—were considered. During the measurements, resonant peaks were obtained—the position of which can also be controlled by the type of liquid crystal cells and the steering voltage. Based on the obtained results, the best parameters, such as highest peak’s width reduction, and the highest SNR value were received for twisted cells. In addition, the present work was compared with the previous work and showed the possibility of improving properties of the manufactured probes, and consequently, the surface plasmon resonance effect. In the presented paper, the novelty is mainly focused on the used materials as well as suitable changes in applied technological parameters. In contrast to gold, silver is characterized by different optic and dielectric properties, e.g., refractive index, extension coefficient, and permittivity, which results in changes in the light propagation and the SPR wavelengths.     

Ruthenium Olefin Metathesis Catalysts Featuring N-Heterocyclic Carbene Ligands Tagged with Isonicotinic and 4-(Dimethylamino)benzoic Acid Rests: Evaluation of a Modular Synthetic Strategy

A modular and flexible strategy towards the synthesis of N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands bearing Brønsted base tags has been proposed and then adopted in the preparation of two tagged NHC ligands bearing rests of isonicotinic and 4-(dimethylamino)benzoic acids. Such tagged NHC ligands represent an attractive starting point for the synthesis of olefin metathesis ruthenium catalysts tagged in non-dissociating ligands. The influence of the Brønsted basic tags on the activity of such obtained olefin metathesis catalysts has been studied.     

On tangential stabilization in curvature driven flows of planar curves

We discuss the role of tangential stabilization in a curvature driven flow of planar curves. The governing system of nonlinear parabolic equations includes a nontrivial tangential velocity functional yielding a uniform redistribution of grid points along the evolving family of curves preventing numerically computed curves from forming various instabilities. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

13C shielding scale for MAS NMR spectroscopy

We have performed the direct measurements of ¹³C magnetic shielding for pure liquid TMS, solution of 1% TMS in CDCl₃ and solid fullerene. The measurements were carried out in spherical ampoules exploring the relation between the resonance frequencies, shielding constants and magnetic moments of ¹³C and ³He nuclei. Next the ¹³C shielding constants of glycine, hexamethylbenzene and adamantane were established on the basis of appropriate chemical shifts measured in the solid state. All the new results are free from susceptibility effects and can be recommended as the reference standards of ¹³C shielding scale in the magic angle spinning NMR experiments. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.