Chemistry & Biodiversity最新文献

This study explores the phytochemical composition and biological potential of extracts from Achillea conferta leaves, specifically Hydroethanolic Extract (HE), Total Flavonoid Extract (TFE), and Glycoside Flavonoid Extract (GFE). Phytochemical screening of HE revealed significant concentrations of phenolic compounds, flavonoids, and tannins, quantified as 48.36 µg GAE/mL extract, 32.40 µg QE/mL extract, and 4.85 µg TAE/mL extract, respectively. High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) identified key flavonoids in TFE and GFE, including catechin, epigallocatechin, hesperidin, myricetin, rutin, isorhamnetin, and luteolin. Antioxidant activities were assessed using assays for reactive oxygen species (ROS), total peroxides, and free radical scavenging (DPPH). GFE demonstrated the highest ROS concentration at 269 µM/g extract. The antiproliferative effects on breast, esophageal, and large intestine cancer cell lines were evaluated, with GFE showing greater efficacy than TFE in all tested cell lines, highlighting the therapeutic potential of A. conferta extracts. These findings highlight the medicinal potential of A. conferta as a natural source of antioxidants and anticancer agents. However, further research is necessary to explore detailed mechanistic pathways and the in vivo efficacy of these extracts.

Alphitonia neocaledonica (Schltr.) Guillaumin is a small forest tree endemic of New Caledonia traditionally used to treat rheumatic pain and dermatoses. Very few studies described biological activities and phytochemical composition of this plant. This study aims to investigate the anti-inflammatory and anti-gout activities of A. neocaledonica bark extract (ANBE) and its chemical composition. LPS-induced PMA-differentiated THP-1 macrophages and LPS/MSU-treated THP-1 model reproducing gout in vitro were used. Chemical analyses were undertaken using LC-HRMS approaches. Dose-dependent inhibitory effects of ANBE on inflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α were observed. Inhibition of LPS/MSU-dependent IL-1β at 1 and 10µg/mL was also reported. Chemical analyses by LC-HRMS allowed us to putatively identify some features such as epigallocatechin, iridoid- and flavonoid-glycosides, oligopeptides, and triterpenoids in ANBE. These results provide some cues in favor of traditional uses of A. neocaledonica bark extract and support the need of further bioactivities and chemical investigations.

Chemical investigation of the marine-derived fungus Trichoderma harzianum ZN-4 led to the isolation and identification of seven new secondary metabolites, harzianolides K-Q (1-7). The complete structures of seven new compounds were determined by high-resolution mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic analyses coupled with electronic circular dichroism calculations. The seven isolates were inactive as antibacterial and antitumor agents. However, harzianolides K (1), L (2), M (3) and O (5) exhibited weak to moderate anti-Pestalotiopsis theae activity with minimum inhibitory concentration values at the range of 25-100 µg/mL.

The present study reports the synthesis of selenium nanocomplexes (Se-TFPs) using purified polysaccharides from Tussilago farfara L. (coltsfoot). It evaluates its structural characteristics, physicochemical properties, and inhibitory effects of Michigan Cancer Foundation-7 (MCF-7) breast cancer cells. The influence of processing conditions on nanoparticle size and stability at 25°C was assessed using particle size and zeta potential measurements. The Se-TFPs were synthesized by optimizing the processing conditions via response surface methodology, yielding nanoparticles with a selenium (Se)-to-polysaccharide mass ratio of 1:13.5, a Se-to-ascorbic acid molar ratio of 1:4.5, a selenite concentration of 10.7 mM, and a reaction time of 4.4 h. The resulting Se-TFPs had an average particle size of 107.2 nm and a zeta potential of -35.1 mV. Structural and physicochemical analyses confirmed successful nanoparticle formation. Compared to TFPs, Se-TFPs exhibited significantly enhanced scavenging activity against 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), hydroxyl radicals, and superoxide anion radicals. The 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assays, flow cytometry, and cell cycle apoptosis analysis revealed that Se-TFPs effectively inhibited MCF-7 cell proliferation at the S phase, with an IC50 value of 119.62 µg/mL.

This study aims to synthesize a novel series of nicotinonitriles incorporating pyrazole, oxadiazole, isoindoline, thiadiazole, and thiazolidinone moieties (compounds 4-11). The synthesis utilizes 2-((3-cyano-4-(4-fluorophenyl)-6-(naphthalen-2-yl)pyridin-2-yloxy)acetohydrazide (3) as a key starting material to enhance potential anticancer activity. The molecular structures of compounds 4-11 were elucidated using various spectroscopic techniques and elemental analysis. The synthesized compounds were screened for cytotoxic activity against human cancer cell lines, including MCF-7 (human Caucasian breast adenocarcinoma), MDA-MB-231 (breast ductal carcinoma), and PC-3 (prostate cancer), using an MTT assay with doxorubicin as a reference drug. Among the tested compounds, 4, 6b, and 7 exhibited the most promising cytotoxic activity, with IC₅₀ values ranging from 22.5 to 91.3 µM. The safety profile of these compounds was further evaluated using noncancerous human skin fibroblast cells (BJ-1). Notably, 6b and 7 demonstrated high selectivity indices (SI > 3) against cancer cells, indicating preferential cytotoxicity, whereas compound 4 lacked selectivity. Docking studies, consistent with experimental data, further supported the potential anticancer properties of compounds 4, 6b, and 7. Given their significant inhibitory effects on cancer cell lines with minimal to no impact on normal cells, compounds 6b and 7 are strong candidates for further drug development as potential anticancer agents.

Plants are a valuable source of diverse natural active compounds with distinct biological characteristics and mechanisms. Considering plant extracts and phytochemicals have biological action both in vitro and in vivo, plants are being used as alternative sources in agriculture and food industry. Mentha pulegium L. and Salvia officinalis L. from the Lamiaceae family are some of the most popular and widely utilized medicinal plants due to their bioactive compounds such as essential oils (EOs) and phenolics, which have powerful antioxidant and antimicrobial characteristics. It is evident that these plants have also a variety of applications due to their various components and concentrations. This study aimed to provide an overview on the two species' composition and biological activities to review the applications of their crude extracts and EOs in agriculture as natural pesticides to protect different cultures and in food industry to produce biobased food packaging.

Acalypha indica is a weed used in traditional cancer treatments. In this study, we present the first attempt to use a metabolomic approach to identify cytotoxic compounds from A. indica extract with potential anticancer properties. The leaves of A. indica were extracted using ethanol, ethyl acetate, chloroform, and n-hexane. The cytotoxic activity against MCF-7 cells was evaluated, revealing 50% inhibition concentration (IC₅₀) values ranging from 51.88 ± 7.80 to 226.86 ± 13.27 µg/mL. Metabolite profiling using liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectroscopy identified 27 metabolites and principal component analysis successfully differentiated the extracts, indicating variability in the compounds extracted using each solvent. To identify the cytotoxic compounds, orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis was used to correlate metabolite profiles with IC₅₀ values from the cytotoxic assay. From the results obtained, we successfully predicted six compounds contributing to the anticancer activity of A. indica, namely hernanol, 13(S)-HpOTrE, (±)9-HpODE, (+)-catechin, traumatic acid, and one compound as assumed to be theobromine. In silico analysis predicted that (+)-catechin and hernanol bind to the alpha-estrogen receptor with an affinity similar to that of doxorubicin.

In this study, a structurally directed pharmacophore hybridization technique is used to combine the two essential structural scaffolds coumarin and thiazoles in search of a new class of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) inhibitor for Alzheimer's disease (AD). A library of 120 compounds was designed in two series 5a(1-15), 5b(16-30), 5c(31-45), 5d(46-60), and 6a(61-75), 6b(76-90), 6c(91-105), 6d(106-120) using various substituted phenol, β-ketoesters, and thiazole derivatives. Eleven compounds were identified as potential hybrids using molecular property filter analysis and molecular docking studies, and they comprise N-substituted thiazole coumarin derivatives. The docking results indicated that compounds 5b16 and 5c35 exhibited strong binding interactions with GLY116, GLY117, TYR332, and HIS438 (ranging from -27.42 to -24.18 kcal/mol) and GLY119, ASP72, and PHE288 (ranging from -32.21 to -25.92 kcal/mol) when tested against AChE (1EVE) and BuChE (1P0I) inhibitors. These compounds were synthesized via conventional methods and characterized by different spectroscopic methods. In vitro anti-cholinesterase activity results indicated that two compounds, for example, 5b16 and 5c35 showed potent to moderate activity against AChE and BuChE with IC₅₀ (2.00 ± 0.09-29.63 ± 0.48) µM and (34.93 ± 0.62-17.92 ± 0.42) µM, respectively. Our study demonstrated the development of a novel class of hybrid coumarin thiazole derivatives as AChE and BuChE inhibitors, and these compounds could be utilized against ADs.

The filamentous temperature-sensitive protein Z (FtsZ) plays a vital role in bacterial division, making it an important antibacterial target. The inhibitor activity targeting the cleft between the H7 helix and the C-terminal substructural domain exhibited superior binding compared to the GTP binding site. This highlights the potential of the cleft as a promising target for further inhibitor discovery. In this study, we established a virtual screening (VS) pipeline using Discovery Studio software and employed FRED for molecular docking and Functional-Class Fingerprints_6 (FCFP_6) for molecular clustering, resulting in the identification of 38 potentially active compounds. These 38 compounds were then subjected to the following FtsZ inhibition assays, resulting in the four active compounds B6, B21, B26, and B31. Further experiments showed that compounds B6 and B26 exhibited antimicrobial activity with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of 8 and 32 µg/mL. Finally, molecular dynamics (MD) was used to analyze the binding modes of the protein-ligand. In addition, we predicted the physicochemical properties and toxicity of B6 and B26. In summary, our study successfully identified novel FtsZ inhibitors with antimicrobial activity through VS and in vitro biological evaluation, demonstrating their potential for further investigation.

Citrus flavonoids are highly bioactive compounds exerting numerous health benefits including anticancer, antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, mitoprotective and neuroprotective activity. Research on their broad-scope bioactivity experienced a renaissance in the early 2000s and further accelerated after COVID-19, including research on their antimicrobial properties. Summarizing selected research achievements on the antimicrobial activity of the main Citrus flavonoids, this study aims to provide a unified picture on the antimicrobial properties of these valued compounds that will hopefully assist in the development of flavonoid-based antimicrobials, including antibacterial treatments suitable for clinical use minimizing antimicrobial resistance.