Bile-Acid-Appended Triazolyl Aryl Ketones: Design,Synthesis, In Vitro Anticancer Activity and Pharmacokinetics in Rats

A library of bile-acid-appended triazolyl aryl ketones was synthesized and characterized by detailed spectroscopic techniques such as ¹H and ¹³C NMR, HRMS and HPLC. All the synthesized conjugates were evaluated for their cytotoxicity at 10 µM against MCF-7 (human breast adenocarcinoma) and 4T1 (mouse mammary carcinoma) cells. In vitro cytotoxicity studies on the synthesized conjugates against MCF-7 and 4T1 cells indicated one of the conjugate 6cf to be most active against both cancer cell lines, with IC₅₀ values of 5.71 µM and 8.71 µM, respectively, as compared to the reference drug docetaxel, possessing IC₅₀ values of 9.46 µM and 13.85 µM, respectively. Interestingly, another compound 6af (IC₅₀ = 2.61 µM) was found to possess pronounced anticancer activity as compared to the reference drug docetaxel (IC₅₀ = 9.46 µM) against MCF-7. In addition, the potent compounds (6cf and 6af) were found to be non-toxic to normal human embryonic kidney cell line (HEK 293), as evident from their cell viability of greater than 86%. Compound 6cf induces higher apoptosis in comparison to 6af (46.09% vs. 33.89%) in MCF-7 cells, while similar apoptotic potential was observed for 6cf and 6af in 4T1 cells. The pharmacokinetics of 6cf in Wistar rats showed an MRT of 8.47 h with a half-life of 5.63 h. Clearly, these results suggest 6cf to be a potential candidate for the development of anticancer agents.     

Synthesis and characterization of toluene-3,4-dithiolatoantimony(III) derivatives with some oxygen and/or sulphur donor ligands

Replacement reactions of toluene-3,4-dithiolatoantimony(III) chloride with oxygen and/or sulphur donor ligands like benzoic acid, thiobenzoic acid, thioacetic acid, phenol, thiophenol, sodium salicylate and thio glycolic acid in 1:1 molar ratio as well as disodium oxalate in 2:1 molar ratio in refluxing anhydrous benzene yielded toluene-3,4-dithiolatoantimony(III) mono oxo and/or thio carboxylic or phenolic derivatives of the general formula {R = OOCC₆H₅, SOCC₆H₅, SOCCH₃, OC₆H₅, SC₆H₅, OOCC₆H₄(OH) and SCH₂COOH} and

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These newly synthesized derivatives are yellow and brown solids/liquids and are soluble in common organic solvents like benzene, chloroform, dichloromethane, etc. These derivatives have been characterized by melting point determination, molecular weight determination, elemental analysis (C, H, S and Sb), spectral {UV, IR and NMR (¹H and ¹³C)} and thermal (TGA, DTA and DSC) studies.     

Dechlorination of DDT, DDD and DDE in soil (slurry) phase using magnesium/palladium system

Mg0/Pd4+ was able to dechlorinate >99% of extractable DDT (initial concentration of 10 mg DDT kg(-1) of soil) and >90% of extractable DDT (initial concentration of 50 mg DDT kg(-1) of soil) in soil slurry. Mg0/Pd4+ was also found to be effective in dechlorinating of 50 mg kg(-1) DDD and DDE, in soil aged for varying time periods. GC-MS analyses revealed the formation of 1,1-diphenylethane as an end product from DDT, DDE and DDD. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report describing the application Mg0/Pd4+ system for remediation of DDT, DDD and DDE contaminated soil. We conclude that reductive dechlorination reaction catalyzed by Mg0/Pd4+ may be a promising system to remediate soil contaminated with DDT and its dechlorinated products such as DDD and DDE.     

Deliberate synthesis for magnetostructural study of linear tetranuclear complexes BIIIMnIIMnIIBIII, MnIIIMnIIMnIIMnIII, MnIVMnIIMnIIMnIV, FeIIIMnIIMnIIFeIII, and CrIIIMnIIMnIICrIII. Influence of terminal ions on the exchange coupling

As part of an ongoing effort to deliberate synthesis of polynuclear heterometal complexes, we are exploring synthetic routes to high-nuclearity complexes using "metal oximates" as building blocks. Series of tetranuclear linear complex ions of the general types M(A)M(B)M(B)M(A), where M(A) is a trivalent or tetravalent metal ion and M(B) is a divalent metal ion, e.g., Mn(II), have been synthesized by using the dimetal(II) anionic cores, [(M(II)(B))(2)(dfmp)(3)](5)(-) as a bridging ligand for the terminal LM(A) fragments where H(3)dfmp is a dinucleating phenol-oxime ligand, 2,6-diformyl-4-methylphenol oxime, and L denotes a facially coordinating cyclic tridentate amine, 1,4,7-trimethyl-1,4,7-triazacyclononane. The following combinations are reported here, B(III)Mn(II)Mn(II)B(III) (1), Mn(III)Mn(II)Mn(II)Mn(III) (2), Mn(IV)Mn(II)Mn(II)Mn(IV) (3), Fe(III)Mn(II)Mn(II)Fe(III) (4), and Cr(III)Mn(II)Mn(II)Cr(III) (5). The compounds have been characterized spectroscopically and by magnetic susceptibility measurements in the temperature range 2.0-290 K at different field strengths. Complexes 1-4 have also been structurally characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction techniques at 100 K. The magnetic behaviors of the compounds indicate weak antiferromagnetic coupling between the manganese(II) centers in the central trisphenoxo-bridged dimanganese(II) core, whereas the coupling between the terminal M(A) and its neighboring Mn(II) center varies and is weak ferromagnetic or antiferromagnetic. The relative interaction intensity in such a series of complexes is discussed. Finally, a profound influence of the charge on the terminal metal ions on the strength of the exchange coupling in the central dimanganese(II) core has been observed and discussed in relation to the covalency of the metal-ligand bonding.     

Cobalt perchlorate hexahydrate catalyzed one-pot synthesis of dihydropyrimidin-ones/-thiones through sonochemistry and its mechanistic study using density functional theory calculations

A cobalt(II) perchlorate hexahydrate coordinated synthesis of dihydropyrimidin-ones and -thiones through sonochemistry is developed. Herein, the reaction was demonstrated as a simple, efficient, and one-pot method for synthesizing a series of interesting 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-ones. Further, the reaction mechanism was investigated using mass spectrometry and density functional theory calculations suggesting that a Lewis acid character of cobalt(II) perchlorate hexahydrate plays a crucial role in coordinating carbonyl functionalities and stabilizing the polar intermediates like imine–enamine which further led to cyclized dihydropyrimidin-ones and -thiones. This methodology was further explored to synthesize a gram-scale synthesis of monastrol drug, a kinase inhibitor.     

Probing platinum degradation in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells by synchrotron X-ray microscopy

Synchrotron-based scanning transmission X-ray spectromicroscopy (STXM) was used to characterize the local chemical environment at and around the platinum particles in the membrane (PTIM) which form in operationally tested (end-of-life, EOL) catalyst coated membranes (CCMs) of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEM-FC). The band of metallic Pt particles in operationally tested CCM membranes was imaged using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The cathode catalyst layer in the beginning-of-life (BOL) CCMs was fabricated using commercially available catalysts created from Pt precursors with and without nitrogen containing ligands. The surface composition of these catalyst powders was measured by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). The local chemical environment of the PTIM in EOL CCMs was found to be directly related to the Pt precursor used in CCM fabrication. STXM chemical mapping at the N 1s edge revealed a characteristic spectrum at and around the dendritic Pt particles in CCMs fabricated with nitrogen containing Pt-precursors. This N 1s spectrum was identical to that of the cathode and different from the membrane. For CCM samples fabricated without nitrogen containing Pt-precursors the N 1s spectrum at the Pt particles was indistinguishable from that of the adjacent membrane. We interpret these observations to indicate that nitrogenous ligands in the nitrogen containing precursors, or decomposition product(s) from that source, are transported together with the dissolved Pt from the cathode into the membrane as a result of the catalyst degradation process. This places constraints on possible mechanisms for the PTIM band formation process.     

Towards singularity- and ghost-free theories of gravity

We present the most general covariant ghost-free gravitational action in a Minkowski vacuum. Apart from the much studied f(R) models, this includes a large class of nonlocal actions with improved UV behavior, which nevertheless recover Einstein's general relativity in the IR.     

Synthesis of 3,7-diiodo-2,6-di(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']difurans: functional building blocks for the design of new conjugated polymers

3,7-Diiodo-2,6-di(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']difurans are efficiently prepared by an iodine-promoted double cyclization. This new heterocyclic core is readily modified by the attachment of alkyl chains for improved solubility. The use of these compounds for the synthesis of new conjugated polymers is also reported.