Intraspinal endodermal cyst: ultrastructural study of abnormal cilia.

Abnormal cilia were demonstrated in the lining epithelial cells of three cases of intraspinal endodermal (bronchogenic) cyst. The changes comprised a wide spectrum of ultrastructural abnormalities, including (a). cilia with abnormal axonemal microtubules, (b). swollen cilia, (c). compound cilia with or without excessive ciliary matrix, (d). naked cilia without limiting membrane, and (e). intracytoplasmic cilia and aggregates of microtubules. Of these, compound cilia and swollen cilia were most common. Cilia with dynein arm deficiency were not observed. Ciliary abnormalities found in the present study were very similar to those described in the bronchial epithelium of various diseases. The present findings suggest that the lining epithelium of intraspinal endodermal cyst shares similar ciliogenesis and susceptibility to abnormal ciliary formation as that of the bronchial epithelium.     

Structure and defects at Y2BaCuO5 interfaces in melt-textured YBa2Cu3Ox superconductors

Y₂BaCuO₅ (211) inclusions are prominent microstructural features found in melt-textured YBa₂Cu₃O_x (123) superconductors. These particles are of interest because the 123/211 interfaces and the interface-associated defects have been proposed to be flux pinning centers. In addition, the 211 particles are believed to be heterogeneous nucleation centers of dislocation which can increase the critical current density of 123. Unfortunately, only limited studies have been performed on these particles to ascertain their roles in flux pinning. In this investigation, 211 particles, the interfacial structure and defects in undeformed and mechanically deformed melt-textured 123 have been studied by transmission electron microscopy. It was found that there appears to be a preferred orientation between large oblong 211 particles and the 123 matrix. In addition, while the 123/211 interfaces in undeformed 123 are sharp and relatively undistorted, the interfaces in deformed 123 samples are much thicker. Also, the distribution of strained regions and dislocations around oblong 211 particles in undeformed 123 is nonuniform; the interfaces of low surface curvature are relatively free of defects while the surfaces of high curvature are abundant in dislocations. In contrast, the 123/211 interfaces in deformed 123 samples contain high density of dislocations regardless of interface curvature.     

A Convenient Regiospecific Synthesis of New Conjugated Tetrazole Derivatives via the Reaction of Dienones with the Tetrachlorosilane-Sodium Azide Reagent and their NMR Structural Assignment

Several new 1-aryl-, aralkyl-, and heteroaryl-5-(4-phenylbuta-1,3-dienyl)tetrazole derivatives and annulated tetrazole derivatives were efficiently and regiospecifically prepared in nearly quantitative yield via a facile one step reaction of dienones with a combination of tetrachlorosilane and sodium azide in acetonitrile under mild conditions. A complete structure assignment of three representative examples of the tetrazoles was achieved by advanced 2D NMR measurements including COSY, TOCSY, HSQC, HMBC, NOESY, and ROESY experiments.     

LC-ESI-MS/MS and cytotoxic activity of three Pistacia species

LC-ESI-MS/MS was used for a comprehensive characterisation of ethanol extract from the leaves of three Pistacia species. After optimisation of the method and the use of the negative ionisation mode, a total of 42 different compounds were identified, of which 22 were tentatively characterised in P. chinensis Bunge, 33 in P. khinjuk stocks and 25 in P. lentiscus L. leaves. Flavonoids, phenolic acids, and their derivatives were the most abundant identified compounds. LC-ESI-MS/MS revealed identification of 15, 18 and 6 not previously detected compounds in P. chinensis Bunge, P. khinjuk Stocks and P. lentiscus L., respectively. The three extracts were also tested for their cytotoxic activities against human PC3 prostate cancer, A549 lung cancer, MCF7 breast cancer and HepG2 liver cancer. Generally, all the extracts have a moderate cytotoxic activity against lung, breast and prostate cancer, with different IC₅₀. However, only P. lentiscus L. showed moderate activity against liver cancer.     

Phytochemical Characterization,Anti-Oxidant,Anti-Enzymatic and Cytotoxic Effects of Artemisia verlotiorum Lamotte Extracts: A New Source of Bioactive Agents

Artemisia verlotiorum Lamotte is recognized medicinally given its long-standing ethnopharmacological uses in different parts of the world. Nonetheless, the pharmacological properties of the leaves of the plant have been poorly studied by the scientific community. Hence, this study aimed to decipher the phytochemicals; quantify through HPLC-ESI-MS analysis the plant’s biosynthesis; and evaluate the antioxidant, anti-tyrosinase, amylase, glucosidase, cholinesterase, and cytotoxicity potential on normal (NIH 3T3) and human liver and human colon cancer (HepG2 and HT 29) cell lines of this plant species. The aqueous extract contained the highest content of phenolics and phenolic acid, methanol extracted the most flavonoid, and the most flavonol was extracted by ethyl acetate. The one-way ANOVA results demonstrated that all results obtained were statistically significant at p < 0.05. A total of 25 phytoconstituents were identified from the different extracts, with phenolic acids and flavonoids being the main metabolites. The highest antioxidant potential was recorded for the aqueous extract. The best anti-tyrosinase extract was the methanolic extract. The ethyl acetate extract of A. verlotiorum had the highest flavonol content and hence was most active against the cholinesterase enzymes. The ethyl acetate extract was the best α-glucosidase and α-amylase inhibitor. The samples of Artemisia verlotiorum Lamotte in both aqueous and methanolic extracts were found to be non-toxic after 48 h against NIH 3T3 cells. In HepG2 cells, the methanolic extract was nontoxic up to 125 µg/mL, and an IC₅₀ value of 722.39 µg/mL was recorded. The IC₅₀ value exhibited in methanolic extraction of A. verlotiorum was 792.91 µg/mL in HT29 cells. Methanolic extraction is capable of inducing cell cytotoxicity in human hepatocellular carcinoma without damaging normal cells. Hence, A. verlotiorum can be recommended for further evaluation of its phytochemical and medicinal properties.     

Which Extraction Solvents and Methods Are More Effective in Terms of Chemical Composition and Biological Activity of Alcea fasciculiflora from Turkey?

The bioactive content, antioxidant properties, and enzyme inhibition properties of extracts of Alcea fasciculiflora from Turkey prepared with different solvents (water, methanol, ethyl acetate) and extraction methods (maceration, soxhlet, homogenizer assisted extraction, and ultrasound assisted extraction) were examined in this study. UHPLC-HRMS analysis detected or annotated a total of 50 compounds in A. fasciculiflora extracts, including 18 hydroxybenzoic and hydroxycinnamic acids, 7 Hexaric acids, 7 Coumarins, 15 Flavonoids, and 3 hydroxycinnamic acid amides. The extracts had phenolic and flavonoid levels ranging from 14.25 to 24.87 mg GAE/g and 1.68 to 25.26 mg RE/g, respectively, in the analysis. Both DPPH and ABTS tests revealed radical scavenging capabilities (between 2.63 and 35.33 mg TE/g and between 13.46 and 76.27 mg TE/g, respectively). The extracts had reducing properties (CUPRAC: 40.38–78 TE/g and FRAP: 17.51–42.58 TE/g). The extracts showed metal chelating activity (18.28–46.71 mg EDTAE/g) as well as total antioxidant capacity (phosphomolybdenum test) (0.90–2.12 mmol TE/g). DPPH, ABTS, FRAP, and metal chelating tests indicated the water extracts to be the best antioxidants, while the ethyl acetate extracts had the highest overall antioxidant capacity regardless of the extraction technique. Furthermore, anti-acetylcholinesterase activity was identified in all extracts (0.17–2.80 mg GALAE/g). The water extracts and the ultrasound-assisted ethyl acetate extract were inert against butyrylcholinesterase, but the other extracts showed anti-butyrylcholinesterase activity (1.17–5.80 mg GALAE/g). Tyrosine inhibitory action was identified in all extracts (1.79–58.93 mg KAE/g), with the most effective methanolic extracts. Only the ethyl acetate and methanolic extracts produced by maceration and homogenizer aided extraction showed glucosidase inhibition (0.11–1.11 mmol ACAE/g). These findings showed the overall bioactivity of the different extracts of A. fasciculiflora and provided an overview of the combination of solvent type and extraction method that could yield bioactive profile and pharmacological properties of interest and hence, could be a useful reference for future studies on this species.     

Numerical Investigation on the Effects of a Precursor Wetting Film on the Displacement of Two Immiscible Phases Along a Channel

A set of numerical experiments has been conducted to study the effect of a precursor fluid layer on the motion of two phase system in a channel. This system is characterized by coupled Cahn-Hillard and Navier-Stokes system together with slip boundary conditions. The solution of the governing equation involves first the solution of Cahn-Hillard equation with semi-implicit and Mixed finite element discritization with a convex splitting scheme. The Navier-Stokes equations are then solved with a P2-P0 mixed finite element method. Three cases have been investigated; in the first the effect of different wettability scenarios with no precursor layer has been investigated. In the second scenario, the effect of the precursor layer for different wettability conditions is investigated. In the third case, the effect of the thickness of the precursor layer is investigated. It is found that, wettability conditions have considerable effect on the flow of the considered two-phase system. Furthermore the existence of the precursor layer has additional influence on the breakthrough of the phases.     

Signal modelization for improved precision of assessment of minimum and mean telomere lengths

Telomere length is an important measure of cell and tissue regenerative capacities. The mean telomere length is classically used as global indicator of a tissue telomere length. In skeletal muscle, which is made of postmitotic myonuclei and satellite cells (muscle stem cells), minimum telomere length is also used to assess the telomere length of satellite cells and newly incorporated myonuclei. At present, the estimation of the method reproducibility during the assessment of mean and minimum telomere length using Southern blot analysis has never been documented. The aim of this report is to describe a signal modelization for improved precision of assessment of minimum and mean telomere lengths and to document the method reproducibility. Telomeres are assessed using a Southern technique where the gel is directly hybridized with the specific probe without the membrane-transferring step in order to prevent telomeric low signal loss. We found that the improved signal analysis for determination of telomere length is associated with coefficients of variation ranging from 1.37 to 4.29% for the mean telomeric restriction fragment (TRF) length and from 2.04 to 4.95% for the minimum TRF length. Improved method reproducibility would allow saving time and biological material as duplicate and triplicate measurement of the same sample is no longer required.     

Studies on 2-Aminothiophenes: Synthesis,Transformations, and Biological Evaluation of Functionally-Substituted Thiophenes and Their Fused Derivatives

Abstract

Heterocyclic enamines1 reacted with ethyl acetoacetate to afford the corresponding amide derivatives2. Treatment of2 with carbon disulphide yielded the dipotassium salts3which reacted in-situ with a variety of α -haloketones to give the respective substituted thiophenes5,8, and13. The reactivity of the latter products towards various chemical reagents was studied to yield their fused thiophene derivatives7,10,12, and14, respectively. Some representative compounds were tested for antimicrobial activity.     

On the preparation of substituted 4H- 1,3,4-thiadiazolo[2,3-c]-1,2,4-triazin-4-ones and 1,2,4-triazolo[3,4-b]-1,3,4-thiadiazoles

The reaction of benzoyl isothiocyanates and methoxycarbonyl isothiocyanate with 4-amino-4,5-dihydro-3-(methylthio)-1,2,4-triazin-5-ones in acetonitrile gave several substituted 4H-1,3,4-thiadiazolo[2,3-c]-1,2,4-triazin-4-ones VIa-h instead of the expected thioureas. In addition, benzoyl isothiocyanate reacted with 4-amino-3-(methylthio)-5-(trifluoromethyl)-4H-1,2,4-triazole to give the benzoyl thiourea IX and with 4-amino-3-mercapto-5-(trifluoromethyl)-4H-1,2,4-triazole to give the bicyclic compound N-[3-(trifluoromethyl)-1,2,4-triazolo[3,4-b]-1,3,4-thiadiazol-6-yl]benzamide IX .