Hydrazo Pyrazole-Pyridone Fluorescent tag for NLO, Live cell imaging, LFPs visualization, Photophysical probing, and Electrochemical sensor for Dopamine detection

The present communication reports on the synthesis of a novel methyl-pyridone azo fluorescent tag (MPAFT) were proven through 1H (NMR), FT-IR, UV-vis, and high-resolution mass spectrometry. The quantum chemical parameters of MPAFT were evaluated using density functional theory (DFT) analysis. It was further investigated for its latent fingerprint (LFPs) in various surfaces and anticounterfeiting applications. By exposing Level I-Level III, ridge features to UV light with a wavelength of 365 nm, a bioimaging investigation has also demonstrated the potential of MPAFT's emission behaviour. The cyclic voltammetry (CV) and linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) at MPAFT/MGCE (modified glassy carbon electrode) were used to explore the electrochemical sensitivity and reliable detection of dopamine (DA) in neutral PBS (pH 7) electrolyte solution, and the results show good sensitivity and detection. The lower detection limit for LSV was 0.81 μM under optimum conditions.

Therapeutic and Diagnostic Agents based on Bioactive Endogenous and Exogenous Coordination Compounds

Metal-based coordination compounds have very special place in bioinorganic chemistry because of their different structural arrangements and significant application in medicine. Rapid progress in this field increasingly enables the targeted design and synthesis of metal-based pharmaceutical agents that fulfill valuable roles as diagnostic or therapeutic agents. Various coordination compounds have important biological functions, both those initially present in the body (endogenous) and those entering the organisms from the external environment (exogenous): vitamins, drugs, toxic substances, etc. In the therapeutic and diagnostic practice, both the essential for all living organisms and the trace metals are used in metal-containing coordination compounds. In the current review, the most important functional biologically active compounds were classified group by group according to the position of the elements in the periodic table.

Synthesis, characterization, DNA binding interactions, DFT calculations, and Covid-19 molecular docking of novel bioactive copper(I) complexes developed via unexpected reduction of azo-hydrazo ligands

In this work, we focused on the 3rd goal of the sustainable development plan: achieving good health and supporting well-being. Two redox-active hydrazo ligands namely, phenylcarbonohydrazonoyldicyanide (PCHD) and pyridin-4-ylcarbonohydrazonoyl-dicyanide (PyCHD), and their copper(I) complexes have been synthesized and characterized. The analytical data indicates the formation of copper(I) complexes despite starting with copper(II) perchlorate salt. The 1H-NMR and UV-visible spectral studies in DMSO revealed that PyCHD mainly exists in its azo-form, while PCHD exists in azo ↔ hydrazo equilibrium form, and confirmed the copper(I) oxidation state. XPS, spectral and electrochemistry data indicated the existence of copper(I) valence of both complexes. Cyclic voltammetry of PCHD and its copper(I) complex supported the reduction power of the ligand. The antimicrobial activity, cytotoxicity against the mammalian breast carcinoma cell line (MCF7), and DNA interaction of the compounds are investigated. All compounds showed high antimicrobial, and cytotoxic activities, relative to the standard drugs. Upon studying the wheat DNA binding, PCHD and PyCHD were found to bind through external contacts, while both [Cu(PCHD)2]ClO4.H2O and [Cu(PyCHD)2]ClO4.H2O were intercalated binding. In-silico molecular docking simulations against Estrogen Receptor Alpha Ligand Binding Domain (ID: 6CBZ) were performed on all produced compounds and confirmed the invitro experimentally best anticancer activity of [Cu(PyCHD)2]ClO4.H2O. The molecular docking tests against SARS-CoV-2 main protease (ID: 6 WTT) showed promising activity in the order of total binding energy values: [Cu(PCHD)2]ClO4.H2O > [Cu(PyCHD)2]ClO4.H2O > PCHD > PyCHD.

A comparison on the biochemical activities of Fluorescein disodium, Rose Bengal and Rhodamine 101 in the light of DNA binding, antimicrobial and cytotoxic study

Biochemical activities of Fluorescein, Rose Bengal and Rhodamine 101 were studied by DNA binding, antibacterial and cytotoxic studies. DNA binding studies were done using spectroscopic, thermodynamic and molecular modeling techniques. Antibacterial activities were investigated against a gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli and a gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus. Cytotoxic activities were studied against Wi-38 cell line. We observed these dyes bound to minor groove of DNA and structural diversity of dyes affect the phenomenon. No significant antibacterial and cytotoxic activities of these dyes were found in our observations.

Synthesis of Some Novel Nanosized Chelates of Anchoring Bisazo Dye 5-[5-(4,6-Dioxo-2-thioxo-hexahydro-pyrimidin-5-ylazo)-naphthalen-1-ylazo]-2-mercapto-1H-pyrimidine-4,6-dione and Their Applications as Antioxidant and Antitumor Agents

A novel bisazo 5-[5-(4,6-dioxo-2-thioxo-hexahydro-pyrimidin-5-ylazo)-naphthalen-1-ylazo]-2-mercapto-1H-pyrimidine-4,6-dione (H4L) ligand has been synthesized from diazotization coupling between naphthalene-1,5-diamine and 2-thiobarbituric acid. Mn(II), Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II), Zn(II), and Fe(III) chelates were prepared. All prepared compounds were characterized by different techniques. The azo groups did not participate in chelation according to the infrared spectra, whereas the thioamide group did participate. The azo dye ligand coordinated with all metallic ions in a neutral-keto-thiol structure and behaved as a bi- and tridentate moiety. Zinc, manganese, and iron chelates had an octahedral structure, while nickel and cobalt chelates had a tetrahedral structure, but the copper chelate had a square pyramidal geometry. The thermal behavior of all prepared compounds was investigated and thermokinetic parameters were also discussed. X-ray diffraction (XRD) data reflected that Fe(III) and Zn(II) complexes were crystalline while the Cu(II) complex was amorphous. Calcination of the Fe(III) complex at 600 °C yielded a nanosized Fe2O3 crystalline phase, elucidated by XRD and transmission electron microscope. The novel azo dye and some of its chelates were tested against HepG-2. The Fe2O3 nanooxide showed remarkable activity against the HepG-2 cell line rather than its precursor Fe(III) complex. Co(II) had a higher antioxidant activity than the other investigated complexes. In both activities, the Cu(II) complex did not show any activity. Molecular modeling and some theoretical studies were validated, and the experimental results were interpreted.

Recent Applications of Azo Dyes: A Paradigm Shift from Medicinal Chemistry to Biomedical Sciences

Azo molecules possess the characteristic azo bond (-N=N-) and are considered fascinating motifs in organic chemistry. Since the last century, these brightly colored compounds have been widely employed as dyes across several industries in applications for printing, food, paper, cosmetics, lasers, electronics, optics, material sciences, etc. The discovery of Prontosil, an antibacterial drug, propelled azo compounds into the limelight in the field of medicinal chemistry. Subsequent discoveries including Phenazopyridine, Basalazide, and Sulfasalazine enabled azo compounds to occupy a significant role in the drug market. Furthermore, azo compounds have been employed as antibacterial, antimalarial, antifungal, antioxidant, as well as antiviral agents. The metabolic degradation of many azo dyes can induce liver problems if ingested, posing a safety concern and limiting their application as azo dyes in medicinal chemistry. However, azo dyes remain particularly significant for applications in cancer chemotherapy. Recently, a paradigm shift has been observed in the use of azo dyes: from medicinal chemistry to biomedical sciences. The latter benefits from azo dye application are related to imaging, drug delivery, photo-pharmacology and photo switching. Herein, we have compiled and discussed recent works on azo dye compounds obtained so far, focusing on their medicinal importance and future prospects.

A review: Pharmacological aspects of metal based 1,2,4-triazole derived Schiff bases

Clinical reports have highlighted the radical increase of antibiotic resistance. As a result, multidrug resistance has emerged as a serious threat to human health. Many organic compounds commonly used as drugs in the past, no longer have pure organic mode of action rather need bio-transformation or more activation. Bulk of research has shown that they need trace amount of metal ions incorporated within the chemistry of bioactive molecules for enhancement of their potentiality to fight aggressively against resistance. The deficiency of some metal ions can also be responsible for many diseases like growth retardation, pernicious anemia and heart diseases in infants. To overcome these problems, there is a need to introduce novel strategies which have new mechanism of action along with significant spectrum of biological activity, enhanced safety and efficacy. Bioinorganic compounds have played imperative role in developing the new strategy in the form of "Metal Based Drugs". In current years there have been momentous rise of interest in the application of metal based Schiff base compounds to treat various diseases which are difficult to be treated with conventional methodologies. The unique properties of metal chelates acting as an intermediate between conventional organic and inorganic compounds provided innovative opportunities in the field of pharmaceutical chemistry. In this review, we have exclusively focused on the search of metal based 1,2,4-triazole derived Schiff base compounds (synthesized, reported and reviewed in the past ten years) that possess various biological activities such as antifungal, antibacterial, antioxidant, antidiabetic, anthelmintic, anticancer, antiproliferative, cytotoxic and DNA-intercalation activity.

Rapid, sensitive, and selective copper (II) determination using sensitive chromogenic azo dye based on sulfonamide

A simple methods have been developed for determination of Cu(II) ions in aqueous solutions. The spectrophotometric method relied mainly on the reaction between Cu(II) ions and the azo dye ligand named N-diaminomethylene-4-(2,4-dihydroxy-phenylazo)-benzenesulfonamide (H₂L) at pH 10.0. The influence of parameters such as concentration, pH and reaction time were inspected. A linear relationship (R² = 0.9992) between absorbance and the concentration of Cu(II) was obtained at themaximum absorptionpeak of 474 nm within 1.6-9.6 × 10^-6 mol L^-1 concentration range. The limit of detection for Cu(II) ion and limit of quantitation were 1.1 × 10^-7 mol L^-1 and 3.7 × 10^-7 mol L^-1, respectively.The potentiometric method is based on a novel poly(vinyl chloride) membrane, containing the synthesized azo dye as an ionophore, was used to developed a Cu(II)- selective sensor. This newly developed sensor revealed a Nernstian response over Cu²⁺ ion in a concentration range 1.0 × 10^-6-1.0 × 10^-2 mol L^-1 with cationic slopes of 29.5 ± 0.2 mV decade^-1 and detection limits of 3.0 × 10^-6 mol L^-1 copper(II) for o-nitrophenyl-octyl ether (o-NPOE) based membrane sensor. The electrode showed good discrimination toward Cu²⁺ ions with respect to most common cations. The advantages of the proposed methods are their simplicity, selectivity, and high sensitivity. In addition, the sensor has been used as indicator electrode in the potentiometric titration of Cu²⁺ ion against EDTA. The structure and geometry of the complex formed between Cu(II) and H₂L ligand was identified via isolation of the solid complex; Co(II) an Ni(II) complexes were synthesized as well. The geometrical structure around the metal centers were proved to be square planar for Cu(II) complex and tetrahedral for Co(II) an Ni(II) complexes.

Evidence for Dual Site Binding of Nile Blue A toward DNA: Spectroscopic, Thermodynamic, and Molecular Modeling Studies

Binding of Nile Blue (NB) with calf thymus DNA has been studied using molecular modeling, spectroscopic, and thermodynamic techniques. Our study revealed that NB binds to the DNA helix by two types of modes (groove binding and intercalation) simultaneously. The thermodynamic study showed that the overall binding free energy is a combination of several negative and positive free energy changes. The binding was favored by negative enthalpy and positive entropy changes (due to the release of water from the DNA helix). The docking study validated all experimental evidence and showed that NB binds to a DNA minor groove at low concentrations and switches to intercalation mode at higher concentrations.

Probing CO Generation through Metal-Assisted Alcohol Dehydrogenation in Metal-2-(arylazo)phenol Complexes Using Isotopic Labeling (Metal = Ru, Ir): Synthesis, Characterization, and Cytotoxicity Studies

The reaction of 2-{2-(benzo[1,3]dioxol-5-yl)- diazo}-4-methylphenol (HL) with [Ru(PPh₃)₃Cl₂] in ethanol resulted in the carbonylated ruthenium complex [RuL(PPh₃)₂(CO)] (1), wherein metal-assisted decarbonylation via in situ ethanol dehydrogenation is observed. When the reaction was performed in acetonitrile, however, the complex [RuL(PPh₃)₂(CH₃CN)] (2) was obtained as the main product, probably by trapping of a common intermediate through coordination of CH₃CN to the Ru(II) center. The analogous reaction of HL with [Ir(PPh₃)₃Cl] in ethanol did not result in ethanol decarbonylation and instead gave the organoiridium hydride complex [IrL(PPh₃)₂(H)] (3). Unambiguous evidence for the generation of CO via ruthenium-assisted ethanol oxidation is provided by the synthesis of the ¹³C-labeled complex, [Ru(PPh₃)₂L(¹³CO)] (1A) using isotopically labeled ethanol, CH₃¹³CH₂OH. To summarize all the evidence, a ruthenium-assisted mechanistic pathway for the decarbonylation and generation of alkane via alcohol dehydrogenation is proposed. In addition, the in vitro antiproliferative activity of complexes 1-3 was tested against human cervical (HeLa) and human colorectal adenocarcinoma (HT-29) cell lines. Complexes 1-3 showed impressive cytotoxicity against both HeLa (half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) value of 3.84-4.22 μM) and HT-29 cancer cells (IC₅₀ values between 3.3 and 4.5 μM). Moreover, the complexes were comparatively less toxic to noncancerous NIH-3T3 cells.

A simple pyrimidine based colorimetric and fluorescent chemosensor for sequential detection of copper (II) and cyanide ions and its application in real samples

In this study, a new pyrimidine-based chemosensor (PyrCS) has been developed for sequential detection of copper (II) and cyanide ions. The PyrCS has revealed high sensitivity and selectivity toward copper ion over other metal ions in aqueous media. The PyrCS as an optical probe exhibited a distinct color change and a bathochromic shift in UV spectra in the presence of copper ion in a few seconds due to the formation of stable complex (PyrCS-Cu²⁺). The results confirmed that the PyrCS has a widely linear detection range of 0.3-30 μM toward Cu²⁺. The calculated limit of detection for Cu²⁺ ions was low as 0.116 μM. Moreover, the fluorescent intensity of PyrCS at 507 nm was significantly quenched in the presence of Cu²⁺ and Fe²⁺ ions. Additionally, complex PyrCS-Cu²⁺ was successfully used to detect cyanide ions via Cu²⁺ displacement approach. The free PyrCS was recovered after adding the CN‾ ions in a few seconds due to the formation of the stable copper cyanide complex Cu(CN)_x. The calculated LOD for CN‾ ions was low as 0.320 μM. The data also clarified that the other competing anions did not create a clear color change in solutions. Since the proposed method could provide a vivid colorimetric response in the presence of detected analytes within the pH range of 3-9, we can claim that the developed chemosensor can be utilized in any physical and biological conditions.

An Overview on Conventional and Non-Conventional Therapeutic Approaches for the Treatment of Candidiasis and Underlying Resistance Mechanisms in Clinical Strains

Fungal infections and, in particular, those caused by species of the Candida genus, are growing at an alarming rate and have high associated rates of mortality and morbidity. These infections, generally referred as candidiasis, range from common superficial rushes caused by an overgrowth of the yeasts in mucosal surfaces to life-threatening disseminated mycoses. The success of currently used antifungal drugs to treat candidiasis is being endangered by the continuous emergence of resistant strains, specially among non-albicans Candida species. In this review article, the mechanisms of action of currently used antifungals, with emphasis on the mechanisms of resistance reported in clinical isolates, are reviewed. Novel approaches being taken to successfully inhibit growth of pathogenic Candida species, in particular those based on the exploration of natural or synthetic chemicals or on the activity of live probiotics, are also reviewed. It is expected that these novel approaches, either used alone or in combination with traditional antifungals, may contribute to foster the identification of novel anti-Candida therapies.

Synthesis of 5-Alkyl- and 5-Phenylamino-Substituted Azothiazole Dyes with Solvatochromic and DNA-Binding Properties

A series of new 5-mono- and 5,5'-bisamino-substituted azothiazole derivatives was synthesized from the readily available diethyl azothiazole-4,4'-dicarboxylate. This reaction most likely comprises an initial Michael-type addition by the respective primary alkyl and aromatic amines at the carbon atom C5 of the substrate. Subsequently, the resulting intermediates are readily oxidized by molecular oxygen to afford the amino-substituted azothiazole derivatives. The latter exhibit remarkably red-shifted absorption bands (λabs =507-661 nm) with high molar extinction coefficients and show a strong positive solvatochromism. As revealed by spectrometric titrations and circular and linear dichroism studies, the water-soluble, bis-(dimethylaminopropylamino)-substituted azo dye associates with duplex DNA by formation of aggregates along the phosphate backbone at high ligand-DNA ratios (LDR) and by intercalation at low LDR, which also leads to a significant increase of the otherwise low emission intensity at 671 nm.

Synthesis, characterization and biological activities of imidazo[1,2-a]pyridine based gold(III) metal complexes

Five imidazo [1,2-a]pyridine derivatives and their Au(III) complexes were synthesized. The compounds were characterized by ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR, IR, mass, UV-visible, elemental analysis, conductivity and magnetic measurement studies. All the compounds were screened for diverse biological activities to check the effect of coordination of Au(III) with imidazo [1,2-a]pyridine heterocycles. The DNA interaction ability of compounds were studied as the change in absorption maxima and position of HS-DNA in presence of compounds and viscosity measurement due to change in DNA length under the influence of compounds. The computational insight of compound-DNA interaction was taken in docking study. All the results suggest intercalation mode of binding. The cellular level cytotoxic nature of compounds was evaluated using trypan blue dye staining of dead cell in cell viability assay. The smearing of DNA was observed, while DNA extracted from S. pombe cells in presence of complexes was subjected to gel electrophoresis, which shows their toxic effect on DNA. The complexes were evaluated for cytotoxicity on human A549 (Lung adenocarcinoma) cell line by MTT assay (IC₅₀ values). The in vitro cytotoxicity in terms of LC₅₀ value was checked on a simple zoological organism, brine shrimp.

Combined experimental, DFT theoretical calculations and biological activity of sulfaclozine azo dye with 1-hydroxy-2-naphthoic acid and its complexes with some metal ions

Sulfaclozine-1-hydroxy-2-naphthoic acid azo dye (Scna) and its metal complexes with Ni(ii) Cu(ii), Zn(ii) and Pd(ii) metal ions have been prepared and characterized using different techniques.