Synthesis of a Glyoxalase I Inhibitor from Streptomyces griseosporeus NIIDAet OGASAWARA

The pseudolactones 6 and 12 were prepared in a straightforward way from methyl α-D -glucopyranoside and methyl α-D -mannopyranoside, respectively. The pseudolactone 6 reacted with tert-butyl lithioacetate to give the protected, trihydroxylated cyclohexenone carboxylate 7 (51 %). The sterically hindered, L-ribo-configurated pseudolactone 12 reacted with diethyl ethylphosphonate and dimethyl methylphosphonate to give the protected trihydroxycyclohexenones 17 (49 %) and 18 (62 %), respectively. The hydroxymethylated cyclohexenone 21 was obtained from 18 by treatment with Me₂AlSPh and then formaldehyde, oxidation of the product 19 , and elimination. Deprotection of 21 gave 2 , identical with KD16-Ul. Esterification of 2 gave 1 , identical with the title compound. Alternatively, 1 was obtained in higher yields by esterification of 21 , followed by deprotection of the hydroxy groups. This synthesis gave 1 and 2 from methyl α-D -mannopyranoside in an overall yield of 18 and 20 %, respectively, confirming their absolute configuration.     

Molecular dynamics averaging of Xe chemical shifts in liquids

The Xe nuclear magnetic resonance chemical shift differences that afford the discrimination between various biological environments are of current interest for biosensor applications and medical diagnostic purposes. In many such environments the Xe signal appears close to that in water. We calculate average Xe chemical shifts (relative to the free Xe atom) in solution in eleven liquids: water, isobutane, perfluoro-isobutane, n-butane, n-pentane, neopentane, perfluoroneopentane, n-hexane, n-octane, n-perfluorooctane, and perfluorooctyl bromide. The latter is a liquid used for intravenous Xe delivery. We calculate quantum mechanically the Xe shielding response in Xe-molecule van der Waals complexes, from which calculations we develop Xe (atomic site) interpolating functions that reproduce the ab initio Xe shielding response in the complex. By assuming additivity, these Xe-site shielding functions can be used to calculate the shielding for any configuration of such molecules around Xe. The averaging over configurations is done via molecular dynamics (MD). The simulations were carried out using a MD technique that one of us had developed previously for the simulation of Henry's constants of gases dissolved in liquids. It is based on separating a gaseous compartment in the MD system from the solvent using a semipermeable membrane that is permeable only to the gas molecules. We reproduce the experimental trends in the Xe chemical shifts in n-alkanes with increasing number of carbons and the large chemical shift difference between Xe in water and in perfluorooctyl bromide. We also reproduce the trend for a given solvent of decreasing Xe chemical shift with increasing temperature. We predict chemical shift differences between Xe in alkanes vs their perfluoro counterparts.     

Experimental study of effect of void volume fraction on neutron diffusion parameters in water

The dependence of the diffusion parameters including slowing down area, neutron diffusion length and migration length on the voided volume fraction in water has been studied experimentally. For this purpose, the PIEAS Neutron Transport Facility (PNTF) comprised of a 10 Ci Am–Be neutron source and a water filled aluminum tank with Perspex voided tubes has been designed and fabricated. A BF₃ detector was used for the neutron counting. The slowing down area was determined at the cadmium cutoff level. The diffusion parameters were determined first in the absence of voids. The experimentally measured values of the slowing down area, the diffusion length and the migration length have been found in good agreement with the corresponding values determined by other workers. By varying void volume fraction from 0% to 7.5%, the experimental measurements show a monotonic increase in the slowing down area from 58.71±2.6 to 71.28±3.2 cm², in the diffusion length from 2.95±0.13 to 3.11±0.13 cm and in the migration length from 8.21±0.165 to 8.99±0.169 cm. Our measurements show that the diffusion parameters exhibit a quadratic dependence on the void volume fraction.     

Extraction and characterization of adenovirus

A new methodology for the extraction and characterization of proteins from Coomassie-stained sodium dodecylsulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) has been described. The utility of this methodology was demonstrated in the characterization of adenovirus proteins. The key steps in the extraction and destaining process involve washing the excised band with a combination of solvents that include 10% acetic acid, acetonitrile, methanol, and formic acid:water:isopropanol mixture. By using this procedure, we determined adenovirus proteins with molecular weights ranging from 10,000 to 110,000 Da by MALDI-MS, obtaining a detection limit of approximately 6 pmol. Parallel experiments were successfully carried out to analyze adenovirus proteins from Cu-stained gels. It was observed that increase in laser intensity resulted in significant improvements in the quality of MALDI mass spectra for the analysis of inefficiently destained proteins from Cu-stained gels.     

Studies on extraction of Cu(II), Ga(III), In(III) and Tl(III) with 1-phenyl-3-methyl-4-benzoylpyrazol-5-one Separation and spectrophotometric determination of copper and gallium

The extraction of Cu(II), Ga(III), In(III) and Tl(III) with 1-phenyl-3-methyl-4-benzoylpyrazol-5-one (HPMBzP) from aqueous solutions has been investigated. The mechanism of extraction and the composition of the species extracted has been determined. The effect of equilibration time, various organic solvents and salting-out agents on the extraction of copper and gallium has also been investigated. The green Cu(PMBzP)₂ chelate has absorption maxima at 298 and 670 nm, and PMBzP has maximum absorbance at 290 nm. A new and sensitive spectrophotometric method for copper has been devised, based on the absorbance at 670 nm. The presence of excess of reagent does not interfere and no special treatment is necessary to destroy it. The proposed method has some advantages and has been applied for the determination of copper in various soil samples. Gallium has been separated from indium, thallium, copper, iron and many other elements. The recovery of gallium and copper was 100 ± 0.2%.     

Oxidation of triethylamine by molecular oxygen catalyzed by Ru(III)-ion

The kinetics of Ru(III) catalyzed oxidation of triethylamine by molecular oxygen has been investigated in the pH range 1.5 to 2.5 at 35°C and I=0.1 M KCl. The reaction is first order with respect to substrate, catalyst and molecular oxygen concentrations. The rate of the reaction increases with the increase of pH from 1.5 to 2.5 and then there is a slight decrease in the rate above pH 2.5. Based on the kinetic data, a mechanism for the catalytic oxidation of triethylamine is proposed. The major products in the oxidation of triethylamine are the N-oxide, diethylamine and acetaldehyde.

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, Ru(III), pH=1,5+2,5 35°C I=0,1M KCl. , . pH 1,5 2,5, pH 2,5. , . N-, .

     

The preparation and characterization of mono- and bis-chelated cadmium(II) complexes of the di-2-pyridylketone Schiff base of S-methyldithiocarbazate (Hdpksme) and the X-ray crystal structure of the [Cd(dpksme)2] · 0.5 MeOH complex

New cadmium(II) complexes of empirical formulae, [Cd(dpksme)X] (dpksme = anionic form of the Schiff base; X = NCS^–, Cl^–, I^–) and [Cd(dpksme)₂] · 0.5MeOH, respectively have been prepared and characterized. The mono-ligated cadmium(II) complexes, [Cd(dpksme)X] are four-coordinate and tetrahedral but the bis-ligand complex, [Cd(dpksme)₂] · 0.5MeOH is six-coordinate and octahedral. The crystal and molecular structure of [Cd(dpksme)₂] · 0.5MeOH has been determined by X-ray diffraction. The complex has a distorted mer-octahedral structure in which the ligands are coordinated as uninegatively charged tridentate chelating agents via the pyridine nitrogen atoms, the azomethine nitrogen atoms and the thiolate sulfur atoms. The distortion from regular octahedral geometry is ascribed to the restricted bite angles of the ligands. The Schiff base and its cadmium(II) complexes exhibit mild antibacterial activities against Shigella dysenteriae, Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. They are also mildly fungitoxic against the phytopathogenic fungi, Alternaria alternata and Macrophomina phaseolina.     

Design,Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Novel Dihydropyridine and Pyridine Analogs as Potent Human Tissue Nonspecific Alkaline Phosphatase Inhibitors with Anticancer Activity: ROS and DNA Damage-Induced Apoptosis

Small molecules with nitrogen-containing scaffolds have gained much attention due to their biological importance in the development of new anticancer agents. The present paper reports the synthesis of a library of new dihydropyridine and pyridine analogs with diverse pharmacophores. All compounds were tested against the human tissue nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (h-TNAP) enzyme. Most of the compounds showed excellent enzyme inhibition against h-TNAP, having IC₅₀ values ranging from 0.49 ± 0.025 to 8.8 ± 0.53 µM, which is multi-fold higher than that of the standard inhibitor (levamisole = 22.65 ± 1.60 µM) of the h-TNAP enzyme. Furthermore, an MTT assay was carried out to evaluate cytotoxicity against the HeLa and MCF-7 cancer cell lines. Among the analogs, the most potent dihydropyridine-based compound 4d was selected to investigate pro-apoptotic behavior. The further analysis demonstrated that compound 4d played a significant role in inducing apoptosis through multiple mechanisms, including overproduction of reactive oxygen species, mitochondrial dysfunction, DNA damaging, and arrest of the cell cycle at the G1 phase by inhibiting CDK4/6. The apoptosis-inducing effect of compound 4d was studied through staining agents, microscopic, and flow cytometry techniques. Detailed structure–activity relationship (SAR) and molecular docking studies were carried out to identify the core structural features responsible for inhibiting the enzymatic activity of the h-TNAP enzyme. Moreover, fluorescence emission studies corroborated the binding interaction of compound 4d with DNA through a fluorescence titration experiment.     

Syringic Acid Ameliorates Cardiac,Hepatic, Renal and Neuronal Damage Induced by Chronic Hyperglycaemia in Wistar Rats: A Behavioural,Biochemical and Histological Analysis

This study investigated the effects of syringic acid (SA) on renal, cardiac, hepatic, and neuronal diabetic complications in streptozotocin-induced neonatal (nSTZ) diabetic rats. STZ (110 mg/kg i.p) was injected into Wistar rat neonates as a split dose (second and third postnatal day). Diabetes mellitus was diagnosed in adults by measuring fasting blood glucose levels, urine volume, and food and water intake. The treatment of SA (25 mg/kg, 50 mg/kg p.o) was given from the 8th to 18th postnatal week. To assess the development of diabetic complications and the effect of therapy, biochemical indicators in serum and behavioural parameters were recorded at specific intervals during the study period. SA (25 mg/kg, 50 mg/kg p.o) treatment reduced hyperglycaemia, polydipsia, polyphagia, polyuria, relative organ weight, cardiac hypertrophic indices, inflammatory markers, cell injury markers, glycated haemoglobin, histopathological score, and oxidative stress, and increased Na/K ATPase activity. These findings suggest that SA might significantly alleviate diabetic complications and/or renal, neuronal, cardiac, and hepatic damage in nSTZ diabetic rats.