The Concept of Folic Acid in Health and Disease

Folates have a pterine core structure and high metabolic activity due to their ability to accept electrons and react with O-, S-, N-, C-bounds. Folates play a role as cofactors in essential one-carbon pathways donating methyl-groups to choline phospholipids, creatine, epinephrine, DNA. Compounds similar to folates are ubiquitous and have been found in different animals, plants, and microorganisms. Folates enter the body from the diet and are also synthesized by intestinal bacteria with consequent adsorption from the colon. Three types of folate and antifolate cellular transporters have been found, differing in tissue localization, substrate affinity, type of transferring, and optimal pH for function. Laboratory criteria of folate deficiency are accepted by WHO. Severe folate deficiencies, manifesting in early life, are seen in hereditary folate malabsorption and cerebral folate deficiency. Acquired folate deficiency is quite common and is associated with poor diet and malabsorption, alcohol consumption, obesity, and kidney failure. Given the observational data that folates have a protective effect against neural tube defects, ischemic events, and cancer, food folic acid fortification was introduced in many countries. However, high physiological folate concentrations and folate overload may increase the risk of impaired brain development in embryogenesis and possess a growth advantage for precancerous altered cells.     

A novel chelatofore functionalized spiropyran of the 2‐oxaindane series

A novel chelatofore functionalized spiropyran of the 2‐oxaindane series, namely 8‐formyl‐7‐hydroxy‐3′,3′‐dimethylspiro[2H‐chromene‐2,1′(3′H)‐2‐benzofuran], C₁₉H₁₆O₄, is reported. In the crystalline state, dimers are formed as a result of the π–π stacking of aromatic groups of the 2H‐chromene part of the molecule and C—H...O interactions. The C_spiro—O bond length in the pyran ring is 1.4558 (10) Å, which is longer than or equal to the bond length in thermo‐ and photochromic 2‐oxaindane spiropyrans synthesized previously, except for the 7,8‐benzo/6‐NO₂ derivative, in which this bond length is 1.465 (2) Å.     

Diimidazo[4,5-b:4′,5′-e]pyridine: synthesis and nucleophilic aromatic substitution reaction

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IR spectral fingerprints of carbonyl groups in graphite oxide: a theoretical study

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New approach to chemical modification of PIM-1 for gas separation membranes

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6-Amino-5-hydroxy-2,3-dimethylpyrimidin-4(3H)-one as an efficient inhibitor of free radical oxidation

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Unusual spiral structures formed by glycated β-casein in the presence of thioflavin T: amyloid transformation?

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An Isometric Approach to Generalized Stochastic Integrals

The possibility to extend the classical Ito's construction of stochastic integrals is studied. This construction can be applied to fractional Brownian motions with Hurst index H(0, 1/2). A change of variables formula for fractional Brownian motions in terms of the stochastic integrals is given.