An in vitro and in vivo study of a novel zinc complex, zinc N-(2-hydroxyacetophenone)glycinate to overcome multidrug resistance in cancer

Multiple drug resistance (MDR) remains a major clinical challenge for cancer treatment. P-glycoprotein is the major contributor and they exceed their role in the chemotherapy resistance of most of the malignancies. Attempts in several preclinical and clinical studies to reverse the MDR phenomenon by using MDR modulators have not yet generated promising results. In the present study, a co-ordination complex of zinc viz., Zn N-(2-hydroxyacetophenone)glycinate (ZnNG) has been synthesized, characterized and its antitumour activity was tested in vitro against drug sensitive and resistant human T-lymphoblastic leukemic cell lines (CCRF/CEM and CEM/ADR5000 respectively) and in vivo against Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC) implanted in female Swiss albino mice. To evaluate the cytotoxic potential of ZnNG, we used sensitive CCRF/CEM and drug resistant CEM/ADR 5000 cell lines in vitro. Moreover, ZnNG also has the potential ability to reverse the multidrug resistance phenotype in drug resistant CEM/ADR 5000 cell line and induces apoptosis in combination with vinblastine. ZnNG remarkably increases the life span of Swiss albino mice bearing sensitive and doxorubicin resistant subline of EAC in presence and in absence of doxorubicin. In addition, intraperitoneal application of ZnNG in mice does not show any systemic toxicity in preliminary trials in normal mice. To conclude, a novel metal chelate of zinc viz., ZnNG, may be a promising therapeutic agent against sensitive as well as drug resistant cancers.     

Lavandulifolioside B: a new phenylethanoid glycoside from the aerial parts of Stachys lavandulifolia Vahl

Reversed-phase preparative HPLC analyses of the methanol extract of the aerial parts of Stachys lavandulifolia afforded a new phenylethanoid glycoside, 4,3',4'-trimethoxy-lavandulifolioside A, named lavandulifolioside B, together with three other known phenylethanoid glycosides, lavandulifolioside A, verbascoside and leucosceptoside A, and an iridoid glycoside 5-O-β-allopyranosyloxy-aucubin (5-O-β-allopyranosyl-monomelittoside). While the structures of the known compounds, except the iridoid glycoside, were established by direct comparison of their spectroscopic data with respective literature data, lavandulifolioside B and 5-O-β-allopyranosyloxy-aucubin were identified comprehensively by extensive 1D and 2D NMR analyses. The distribution of the isolated compounds within the genus Stachys has been discussed.     

Total synthesis and analgesic activity of 6-fluoroindan-1-carboxylic acid

6-Fluoroindan-1-carboxylic acid (4) was conveniently synthesised from 3-fluorobenzaldehyde in six steps. The structure of this new compound and three other intermediates, 3-fluorophenylcyanoethylacrylate (1), 3-fluorophenyl succinic acid (2) and 6-fluoro-3-oxo-indan-1-carboxylic acid (3) was elucidated by comprehensive spectral data analyses. The analgesic activity of compounds 3 and 4 was assessed by the acetic acid induced writhing in Swiss albino mice.     

Effect of substituents at the heteroatom on the structure and ligating properties of carbodicarbenes and its silicon analogs: a theoretical study

Density functional calculations have been carried out to investigate the effect of substituents attached to the heteroatoms of N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) on the structure and ligating properties of carbon(0) [C(NHC)₂] and silicon(0) [Si(NHC)₂] compounds. The substituents were found to have a profound role on the structure and ligating properties of these classes of compounds. Fluoro- and chloro-substituted carbon(0) compounds were found to have quasi-linear geometries in which their C(0) characteristics are “masked.” However, their C(0) characteristics become prominent in their protonated species. Large negative charges and shallow bending potential of the central C_c–C₀–C_c angle provide evidence for the “hidden C(0) characteristics” of these two compounds. Electron withdrawing substituents at N-atoms of the two NHCs dramatically decreases the basicity of these compounds. Both natural bonding and atoms in molecules analysis suggest that the most favorable Lewis structure of C(NHC)₂ and Si(NHC)₂ in their equilibrium geometries should be described (portrayed) as L=C=L and L → Si ← L, respectively, where L = NHCs.     

Eremostachiin: a new furanolabdane diterpene glycoside from Eremostachys glabra

The reversed-phase preparative HPLC analysis of the methanol extract of the rhizomes of Eremostachys glabra (Lamiaceae) led to the isolation of two furanolabdane diterpene glycosides, phlomisoside II, and beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->2)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl ester of phlomisoic acid (named eremostachiin), the latter being a novel natural product. The structure of the new compound has been elucidated unambiguously by HRMS and a series of 1D- and 2D-NMR spectroscopic techniques. The free radical scavenging activity of these compounds was assessed using the DPPH assay.     

A Case Study on the Use of Binding Free Energies to Screen Inhibitors of Human Carbonic Anhydrase II

We present in this article a case study on the thermodynamics of binding to human carbonic anhydrase II (HCA II) by three well-known inhibitors, viz. (a) acetazolamide (AZM) that directly binds to the catalytic Zn(II) ion at the active site, (b) non-zinc binding 6-hydroxy-2-thioxocoumarin (FC5) (c) 2-[(S)-benzylsulfinyl]benzoic acid (3G1). In each case, the crystal structure or its analogue of inhibitor-bound HCA II has been used to perform classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulation in water till . AZM and FC5 are found to undergo repeated binding and unbinding with markedly different dynamics from the partially buried, substrate-binding hydrophobic pocket near the active site. 3G1, on the other hand, is found to remain mostly at its crystallographic binding site occluded from the active site of HCA II. The associated binding free energies ( ) have been computed using the known MM/GBSA method and compared to the available experimental data. Our results show that encounters several issues including limited sampling of multiple binding sites and incorrect prediction of the affinity of the chosen ligands. Possible use of the simulation results in further construction of Markov state models is also discussed.