In Vivo Antistress Effects of Synthetic Flavonoids in Mice: Behavioral and Biochemical Approach

Natural flavonoids, in addition to some of their synthetic derivatives, are recognized for their remarkable medicinal properties. The present study was designed to investigate the in vitro antioxidant and in vivo antistress effect of synthetic flavonoids (flavones and flavonols) in mice, where stress was induced by injecting acetic acid and physically through swimming immobilization. Among the synthesized flavones (F1–F6) and flavonols (OF1–OF6), the mono para substituted methoxy containing F3 and OF3 exhibited maximum scavenging potential against DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) with IC₅₀ of 31.46 ± 1.46 μg/mL and 25.54 ± 1.21 μg/mL, respectively. Minimum antioxidant potential was observed for F6 and OF6 with IC₅₀ values of 174.24 ± 2.71 μg/mL and 122.33 ± 1.98 μg/mL, respectively, in comparison with tocopherol. The ABTS scavenging activity of all the synthesized flavones and flavonols were significantly higher than observed with DPPH assay, indicating their potency as good antioxidants and the effectiveness of ABTS (2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonate) assay in evaluating antioxidant potentials of chemical substances. The flavonoids-treated animals showed a significant (* p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01 and *** p < 0.001, n = 8) reduction in the number of writhes and an increase in swimming endurance time. Stressful conditions changed plasma glucose, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, which were used as markers when evaluating stress in animal models. The level of these markers was nearly brought to normal when pre-treated with flavones and flavonols (10 mg/kg) for fifteen days in experimental animals. These compounds also considerably reduced the levels of lipid peroxidation (TBARS: Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances), which was significant (* p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01 and *** p < 0.001, n = 8) compared to the control group. A significant rise in the level of catalase and SOD (super oxide dismutase) was also observed in the treated groups. Diazepam (2 mg/kg) was used as the standard drug. Additionally, the flavonoids markedly altered the weight of the adrenal glands, spleen and brain in stress-induced mice. The findings of the study suggest that these flavonoids could be used as a remedy for stress and are capable of ameliorating diverse physiological and biochemical alterations associated with stressful conditions. However, further experiments are needed to confirm the observed potentials in other animal models, especially in those with a closer resemblance to humans. Toxicological evaluations are also equally important.     

Schemes for Single Electron Transistor Based on Double Quantum Dot Islands Utilizing a Graphene Nanoscroll,Carbon Nanotube and Fullerene

The single electron transistor (SET) is a nanoscale switching device with a simple equivalent circuit. It can work very fast as it is based on the tunneling of single electrons. Its nanostructure contains a quantum dot island whose material impacts on the device operation. Carbon allotropes such as fullerene (C₆₀), carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene nanoscrolls (GNSs) can be utilized as the quantum dot island in SETs. In this study, multiple quantum dot islands such as GNS-CNT and GNS-C₆₀ are utilized in SET devices. The currents of two counterpart devices are modeled and analyzed. The impacts of important parameters such as temperature and applied gate voltage on the current of two SETs are investigated using proposed mathematical models. Moreover, the impacts of CNT length, fullerene diameter, GNS length, and GNS spiral length and number of turns on the SET’s current are explored. Additionally, the Coulomb blockade ranges (CB) of the two SETs are compared. The results reveal that the GNS-CNT SET has a lower Coulomb blockade range and a higher current than the GNS-C₆₀ SET. Their charge stability diagrams indicate that the GNS-CNT SET has smaller Coulomb diamond areas, zero-current regions, and zero-conductance regions than the GNS-C₆₀ SET.     

Ceramic fuel cells using novel proton-conducting BaCe0.5Zr0.3Y0.1Yb0.05Zn0.05O3-δ electrolyte

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - Protonic ceramic fuel cells have become extremely interesting due to their high power output at the intermediate temperature range...     

New nickel(II), copper(II), platinum(II) and palladium(II) complexes of a multidentate sulfur–nitrogen chelating agent

A new, potentially polydentate sulfur–nitrogen chelating agent, 2,6–bis(N-methyl-S-methyldithiocarbazato)pyridine (L) has been synthesized and characterized. With nickel(II) salts, the ligand yields complexes of empirical formula NiLX2·nH2O (X=Cl−, NCS− or NO3−; n=0 or 1) in which it behaves as a quadridentate NSSN chelating agent, coordinating to the nickel(II) ion via the two amino nitrogen atoms and the two sulfur atoms. Magnetic and spectral evidence support a distorted octahedral structure for these complexes. The ligand reacts with copper(II), platinum(II) and palladium(II) salts to yield homo-binuclear complexes of general formula [M2LX4]·nSol (M=CuII, PtII or PdII; X=Cl− or Br−; n=0.5, 1 or 2; Sol=H2O, MeOH or MeCOMe), in which each of the metal ions is in a square-planar environment. These complexes have been characterized by a variety of physicochemical techniques. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Template synthesis and spectroscopic studies of highly conjugated tetraiminetetraamide macrocyclic complexes from 1,2-diphenylethane-1,2-dione dihydrazone

A new class of tetraiminetetraamide macrocyclic (Ph4[20]tetraene, N8O4, and Ph6[20]tetraene, N8O4) complexes have been prepared through the metal ion controlled reaction of 1,2-diphenylethane-1,2-dione dihydrazone (DPEDDH) with succinic acid [ML1X2] or phthalic acid [ML2X2] [M=Mn, Co, Ni, Cu or Zn; X=Cl or NO3]. The structures of the complexes have been elucidated on the basis of i.r, 1H-n.m.r, e.p.r. and electronic spectral data and conductance, as well as magnetic, properties. An octahedral geometry is assigned for all the complexes, involving coordination of the all-imine nitrogens.     

Time-Resolved Fluorescence and Transient Spectroscopy in Determining Photochemical and Photophysical Channels in Reacting Systems in Solutions and Microheterogeneous Media

Abstract— Characterization of short-lived intermediates in homogeneous and microheterogeneous systems has been carried out using time-resolved spectroscopic techniques. The data obtained from these techniques have been analyzed in a relatively unconventional manner to elucidate complex transient behavior for two reactive systems. The highly nonexponential fluorescence decay for a series of fraws-stilbene-derivatized amphiphiles that readily form bilayer systems in aqueous media has been analyzed using a distribution of lifetimes analysis (DLA). The utility of DLA for quantitative studies was first determined by simulation of artificial decay data. Despite some limitations in DLA, qualitative conclusions as to the nature of the fluorescing species may be drawn when supplementary information such as steady-state spectroscopic data are also considered. The results indicate that the observed fluorescence originates from different types of excited-state species that consist of two or more trans-stilbene units; one of the emissions is attributed to the excited state of a ground-state aggregate while the other is assigned to an excimer that may arise from a 'defect'in the bilayer. The nonexponential nature of the decays is attributed to distributions of environments experienced by the fluorescing species. Electron transfer (ET) reactions between several excited pinacols and carbon tetrachloride in solution have been found to yield products with quantum yields that are higher than unity in the presence of oxygen, suggesting a chain mechanism for product formation. In these systems both the donor and the acceptor undergo bond fragmentation following the initial ET step. The individual steps involved in the proposed mechanism for these systems have been investigated in part using different steady-state and time-resolved laser spectroscopic techniques. However, it was also necessary to utilize pulse radiolysis in order to confirm the involvement of certain radical intermediates that were not observable by the usual flash photolysis techniques.     

Amplified cathodic electrochemiluminescence of luminol based on zinc oxide nanoparticle modified Ni-foam electrode for ultrasensitive detection of amoxicillin

Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry - Here is reported a new feasible and facile method for the determination of amoxicillin by the electrochemiluminescence (ECL) method. The ECL signal was...     

Plasmonic Pollen Grain Nanostructures: A Three-Dimensional Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS)-Active Substrate

A new route has been developed to design plasmonic pollen grain-like nanostructures (PGNSs) as surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)-active substrate. The nanostructures consisting of silver (Ag) and gold (Au) nanoparticles along with zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoclusters as spacers were found highly SERS-active. The morphology of PGNSs and those obtained in the intermediate stage along with each elemental evolution has been investigated by a high-resolution field emission scanning electron microscopy. The optical band gaps and crystal structure have been identified by UV-vis absorption and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) measurements, respectively. For PGNSs specimen, three distinct absorption bands related to constituent elements Ag, Au, and ZnO were observed, whereas XRD peaks confirmed the existence of Ag, Au, and ZnO within the composition of PGNSs. SERS-activity of PGNSs was confirmed using Rhodamine 6G (R6G) as Raman-active dyes. Air-cooled solid-state laser kits of 532 nm were used as excitation sources in SERS measurements. SERS enhancement factor was estimated for PGNSs specimen and was found as high as 3.5×10⁶. Finite difference time domain analysis was carried out to correlate the electromagnetic (EM) near-field distributions with the experiment results achieved under this investigation. EM near-field distributions at different planes were extracted for s-, p- and 45° of incident polarizations. EM near-field distributions for such nanostructures as well as current density distributions under different circumstances were demonstrated and plausible scenarios were elucidated given SERS enhancements. Such generic fabrication route as well as correlated investigation is not only indispensable to realize the potential of SERS applications but also unveil the underneath plasmonic characteristics of complex SERS-active nanostructures.     

Formulation of Piperine–Chitosan-Coated Liposomes: Characterization and In Vitro Cytotoxic Evaluation

The present research work is designed to prepare and evaluate piperine liposomes and piperine–chitosan-coated liposomes for oral delivery. Piperine (PPN) is a water-insoluble bioactive compound used for different diseases. The prepared formulations were evaluated for physicochemical study, mucoadhesive study, permeation study and in vitro cytotoxic study using the MCF7 breast cancer cell line. Piperine-loaded liposomes (PLF) were prepared by the thin-film evaporation method. The selected liposomes were coated with chitosan (PLFC) by electrostatic deposition to enhance the mucoadhesive property and in vitro therapeutic efficacy. Based on the findings of the study, the prepared PPN liposomes (PLF3) and chitosan coated PPN liposomes (PLF3C1) showed a nanometric size range of 165.7 ± 7.4 to 243.4 ± 7.5, a narrow polydispersity index (>0.3) and zeta potential (−7.1 to 29.8 mV). The average encapsulation efficiency was found to be between 60 and 80% for all prepared formulations. The drug release and permeation study profile showed biphasic release behavior and enhanced PPN permeation. The in vitro antioxidant study results showed a comparable antioxidant activity with pure PPN. The anticancer study depicted that the cell viability assay of tested PLF3C2 has significantly (p < 0.001)) reduced the IC₅₀ when compared with pure PPN. The study revealed that oral chitosan-coated liposomes are a promising delivery system for the PPN and can increase the therapeutic efficacy against the breast cancer cell line.     

Self-assembly mechanism of PEG-b-PCL and PEG-b-PBO-b-PCL amphiphilic copolymer micelles in aqueous solution from coarse grain modeling

We followed the self-assembly of high-molecular weight MePEG- b -PCL (poly(methyl ethylene glycol)-block-poly(ε-caprolactone)) diblock and MePEG- b -PBO- b -PCL (poly(methyl ethylene glycol)-block-poly(1,2-butylene oxide)-block-poly(ε-caprolactone)) into micelles using molecular dynamics simulation with a coarse grain (CG) force field based on quantum mechanics (CGq FF). The triblock polymer included a short poly(1,2-butylene oxide) (PBO) at the hydrophilic-hydrophobic interface of these systems. Keeping the hydrophilic length fixed (MePEG₄₅), we considered 250 chains in which the hydrophobic length changed from PCL₄₄ or PBO₆- b -PCL₄₃ to PCL₆₂ or PBO₉- b -PCL₆₁. The polymers were solvated in explicit water for 2 μs of simulations at 310.15 K. We found that the longer diblock system undergoes a morphological transition from an intermediate rod-like micelle to a prolate-sphere, while the micelle formed from the longer triblock system is a stable rod-like micelle. The two shorter diblock and triblock systems show similar self-assembly processes, both resulting in slightly prolate-spheres. The dynamics of the self-assembly is quantified in terms of chain radius of gyration, shape anisotropy, and hydration of the micelle cores. The final micelle structures are analyzed in terms of the local density components. We conclude that the CG model accurately describes the molecular mechanisms of self-assembly and the equilibrium micellar structures of hydrophilic and hydrophobic chains, including the quantity of solvent trapped inside the micellar core.