The Binding of Curcuma longa Extract with Bovine Serum Albumin Monitored via Time‐Resolved Fluorescence

Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) is obtained from the rhizome of the Zingberaceae family and has a long history as an ingredient in cooking. It has been used as a dye and recently research has concentrated on its possible health benefits, specifically because of its antioxidant activity. The principal compound that is responsible for this activity is curcumin, which is present with the other curcuminoids; demethoxycurcumin and bisdemethoxycurcumin. Curcumin exhibits fluorescence and its photophysics are markedly affected by the polarity, hydrogen bonding and pH. This provides a means to examine its interaction with proteins, which is important if its potential health role is to be fully investigated. In this work, we monitor the binding kinetics using time‐resolved fluorescence measurements, enabled by the use of low dead time electronics coupled with a high repetition rate excitation source and time‐resolved emission spectra of the extracted curcuminoids upon interaction with bovine serum albumin. From these measurements the decay‐associated spectra of the different lifetime components were obtained, which is consistent with reports of more than one binding site. Monitoring changes in these spectra with increasing temperature also allows for the denaturing of the serum albumin to be inferred.     

Early stages hydration of high initial strength Portland cement

This work complements a quantitative thermogravimetric study of the first 24 h of hydration of a high initial strength and sulphate resistant Portland cement (HS SR PC) using non-conventional differential thermal analysis (NCDTA) and Vicat needle method. Different water/cement (W/C) ratios from 0.35 to 0.85 were used to evaluate the most indicated operating conditions to maximize calcium hydroxide production for further use in CO₂ capture. Thermogravimetric analysis data performed at 4 and 24 h of hydration were also compared to the NCDTA and Vicat data for each kind of paste, to analyze the influence of the W/C ratio on the simultaneous hydration and setting process. The increase of the W/C ratio increases the induction time retards the solidification and setting processes but increases the hydration degree as the W/C ratio is increased from 0.45. At 24 h, products prepared with 0.35 W/C ratio present a little higher hydration degree than those prepared with W/C = 0.45, because of the highest level of temperature in the reacting mixture in the former case, during the first 8 h. There is a practical limit of W/C = 0.66 to prepare the pastes, due to a limit of the miscibility between HS SR PC and water, above which, the excess of water forms a separated phase that does not interfere in the hydration process.     

Diels-Alder reactions of 3-(1H-tetrazol-5-yl)-nitrosoalkenes: synthesis of functionalized 5-(substituted)-1H-tetrazoles

A general route to 1,2-oxazines and open chain oximes bearing a 1H-tetrazolyl substituent via Diels-Alder reaction of 3-(tetrazol-5-yl)-nitrosoalkenes is reported. It was also demonstrated that reduction of these adducts followed by deprotection of the tetrazolyl group give 5-(1-aminoalkyl)-1H-tetrazoles, α-amino acid analogues.     

Harnessing Greenhouse Gases Absorption by Doped Fullerenes with Externally Oriented Electric Field

In this work, a theoretical investigation of the effects caused by the doping of C₂₀ with silicon (Si) atom as well as the adsorption of CO, CO₂ and N₂ gases to C₂₀ and C₁₉Si fullerenes was carried out. In concordance with previous studies, it was found that the choice of the doping site can control the structural, electronic, and energetic characteristics of the C₁₉Si system. The ability of C₂₀ and C₁₉Si to adsorb CO, CO₂ and N₂ gas molecules was evaluated. In order to modulate the process of adsorption of these chemical species to C₁₉Si, an externally oriented electric field was included in the theoretical calculations. It was observed that C₁₉Si is highly selective with respect to CO adsorption. Upon the increase of the electric field intensity the adsorption energy was magnified correspondingly and that the interaction between CO and C₁₉Si changes in nature from a physical adsorption to a partial covalent character interaction.     

Synthesis of [60]Fullerene Hybrids Endowed with Steroids and Monosaccharides: Theoretical Underpinning as Promising anti-SARS-CoV-2 Agents

Cyclopropanation reactions between C₆₀ and different malonates decorated with monosaccharides and steroids using the Bingel-Hirsch methodology have allowed the obtention of a new family of hybrid compounds in good yields. A complete set of instrumental techniques has allowed us to fully characterize the hybrid derivatives and to determine the chemical structure of monocycloadducts. Besides, the proposed structures were investigated by cyclic voltammetry, which evidenced the exclusive reductive pattern of fullerene Bingel-type monoadducts. Theoretical calculations at the DFT-D3(BJ)/PBE 6-311G(d,p) level of the synthesized conjugates predict the most stable conformation and determine the factors that control the hybrid molecules′ geometry. Some parameters such as polarity, lipophilicity, polar surface area, hydrophilicity index, and solvent-accessible surface area were also estimated, predicting its potential permeability and capability as cell membrane penetrators. Additionally, a molecular docking simulation has been carried out using the main protease of SARS-CoV-2 (Mpro) as the receptor, thus paving the way to study the potential application of these hybrids in biomedicine.