Insecticidal activity of a novel fatty acid amide derivative from Streptomyces species against Helicoverpa armigera

Helicoverpa armigera, an important pest causes serious damage to grain legumes. The main objective of this study was to isolate and identify the metabolite against H. armigera from a previously characterised Streptomyces sp. CAI-155. The culture filtrate of CAI-155 was extracted using Diaion HP-20 and the active fractions were fractionated on Silica and C18 column chromatography. The C18 active fraction was further fractionated on Silica gel 60 F₂₅₄ thin layer chromatography (TLC). The most active fraction (Rf 0.64) purified from TLC led to the identification of a novel metabolite N-(1-(2,2-dimethyl-5-undecyl-1,3-dioxolan-4-yl)-2-hydroxyethyl)stearamide by spectral studies. The purified metabolite showed 70–78% mortality in 2nd instar H. armigera by diet impregnation assay, detached leaf assay and greenhouse assay. The LD₅₀ and LD₉₀ values of the purified metabolite were 627 and 2276 ppm, respectively. Hence, this novel metabolite can be exploited for pest management in future.     

Biaryl amino acid templates in place of D-Pro-L-Pro in cyclic beta-hairpin cationic antimicrobial peptidomimetics

The turn-forming D-Pro-L-Pro template has been frequently used to promote regular beta-hairpin conformations in cyclic protein epitope mimetics. Here the use of three isomeric biaryl templates has been studied as alternatives to D-Pro-L-Pro in the preparation of beta-hairpin peptidomimetics. The o,o'- o,m'- and m,m'-isomers of carboxymethyl- and aminomethyl-substituted biaryl templates have been incorporated into novel macrocyclic mimics of the naturally occurring cationic antimicrobial peptide protegrin I. The presence of the o-carboxymethyl-o'-aminomethyl-biaryl template within the macrocyclic peptide resulted in the appearance of slowly interconverting atropisomers. Although none of the resulting mimetics adopted stable beta-hairpin structures in aqueous solution, they all nevertheless retained a significant antimicrobial activity against Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria. These mimetics provide interesting starting points for an optimization program in the search for potent and novel antimicrobial compounds.     

Discovery of potent and specific fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase inhibitors and a series of orally-bioavailable phosphoramidase-sensitive prodrugs for the treatment of type 2 diabetes

Excessive glucose production by the liver coupled with decreased glucose uptake and metabolism by muscle, fat, and liver results in chronically elevated blood glucose levels in patients with type 2 diabetes. Efforts to treat diabetes by reducing glucose production have largely focused on the gluconeogenesis pathway and rate-limiting enzymes within this pathway such as fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase). The first potent FBPase inhibitors were identified using a structure-guided drug design strategy (Erion, M. D.; et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2007, 129, 15480-15490) but proved difficult to deliver orally. Herein, we report the synthesis and characterization of a series of orally bioavailable FBPase inhibitors identified following the combined discoveries of a low molecular weight inhibitor series with increased potency and a phosphonate prodrug class suitable for their oral delivery. The lead inhibitor, 10A, was designed with the aid of X-ray crystallography and molecular modeling to bind to the allosteric AMP binding site of FBPase. High potency (IC50 = 16 nM) and FBPase specificity were achieved by linking a 2-aminothiazole with a phosphonic acid. Free-energy perturbation calculations provided insight into the factors that contributed to the high binding affinity. 10A and standard phosphonate prodrugs of 10A exhibited poor oral bioavailability (0.2-11%). Improved oral bioavailability (22-47%) was achieved using phosphonate diamides that convert to the corresponding phosphonic acid by sequential action of an esterase and a phosphoramidase. Oral administration of the lead prodrug, MB06322 (30, CS-917), to Zucker Diabetic Fatty rats led to dose-dependent inhibition of gluconeogenesis and endogenous glucose production and consequently to significant blood glucose reduction.     

Zn-proline catalyzed selective synthesis of 1,2-disubstituted benzimidazoles in water

Zn-proline (5 mol%) performs as a novel water-soluble and recyclable Lewis acid catalyst for the selective synthesis of 1,2-disubstituted benzimidazoles from wide range of substituted o-phenylenediamines and aldehydes in moderate to excellent isolated yields (42-92%) using water as solvent at ambient temperature.     

Roitman's Theorem for Singular Projective Varieties

We construct an Abel–Jacobi mapping on the Chow group of 0-cycles of degree 0, and prove a Roitman theorem, for projective varieties over C with arbitrary singularities. Along the way, we obtain a new version of the Lefschetz Hyperplane theorem for singular varieties.     

Magnetic Interactions through Imidazolate‐Bridges: Synthesis,Spectroscopy, Crystal Structure and Magnetic Properties of μ‐Imidazolato‐Bridged Copper(II) Complexes

The synthesis, characterization and crystal structures of substituted imidazolate bridged binuclear copper(II) complexes, [Cu₂(dien)₂(L)](ClO₄)₃, where dien = diethylenetriamine, L = imidazolate (im^—) ( 1 ), 2‐methylimidazolate (mim^—) ( 2 ) and benzimidazolate (bim^—) ( 3 ), are reported. The copper(II) ions of 1 — 3 posses a square planar coordination environment with dien coordinating as a tridentate ligand and the fourth position being occupied by a nitrogen atom of the bridging μ‐imidazolato group. In all three compounds the tendency to form additional long apical bonds at the copper(II) ions to the oxygen atoms of the perchlorate anions is observed. Temperature depended susceptibility data of polycrystalline samples reveal an antiferromagnetic coupling of the copper(II) atoms in 1 — 3 with J = —63.8, —75.4 and —36.8 cm^—1, respectively. Significant changes for these coupling constants could not be observed for measurements on frozen aqueous solutions. ESR spectra for solids and frozen solutions are consistent with intramolecular antiferromagnetic exchange interaction between the metal ions. From the data reported it can be concluded that the predominate mechanism for transmitting exchange coupling through the imidazolate bridge is due to a σ exchange pathways.