Synthesis, characterization, electronic absorption and antimicrobial studies of N-(silatranylpropyl)phthalimide derived from phthalic anhydride

The role of silicon in drug discovery: a review

This review aims to highlight the role of silicon in drug discovery. Silicon and carbon are often regarded as being similar with silicon located directly beneath carbon in the same group in the periodic table. That being noted, in many instances a clear dichotomy also exists between silicon and carbon, and these differences often lead to vastly different physiochemical and biological properties. As a result, the utility of silicon in drug discovery has attracted significant attention and has grown rapidly over the past decade. This review showcases some recent advances in synthetic organosilicon chemistry and examples of the ways in which silicon has been employed in the drug-discovery field.

Solvent-Free and Efficient Synthesis of Silatranes via an Organocatalytic Protocol under Mild Conditions

The organocatalytic approach to the formation of silatranyl cages permitted the design of a solvent-free and efficient protocol for the preparation of various organosilatranes. We discovered that amidine derivatives efficiently catalyze the conversion of trialkoxysilanes into organosilatranes, and their catalytic activity is related to the pKBH+ values. NMR studies of equimolar reactions of 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene (DBU) and 1,5,7-triazabicyclo[4.4.0]dec-5-ene (TBD) with selected substrates allowed proposing a reliable scheme for the transesterification process and silatranyl cage formation. In addition, green chemistry metrics for the scaled-up synthesis of vinylsilatrane (3k) were appointed. Finally, a scheme for the industrial production of silatrane derivatives with DBU and solvent regeneration was proposed, supported by a catalyst recycling experiment.

Thiazole, Isatin and Phthalimide Derivatives Tested in vivo against Cancer Models: A Literature Review of the Last Six Years

BACKGROUND

Cancer is a disease characterized by the abnormal multiplication of cells and is the second leading cause of death in the world. The search for new effective and safe anticancer compounds is ongoing due to factors such as low selectivity, high toxicity, and multidrug resistance. Thus, heterocyclic compounds derived from isatin, thiazole and phthalimide that have achieved promising in vitro anticancer activity have been tested in vivo and in clinical trials.

OBJECTIVE

This review focused on the compilation of promising data from thiazole, isatin, and phthalimide derivatives, reported in the literature between 2015 and 2022, with in vivo anticancer activity and clinical trials.

METHODS

A bibliographic search was carried out in the PUBMED, MEDLINE, ELSEVIER, and CAPES PERIODIC databases, selecting relevant works for each pharmacophoric group with in vivo antitumor activity in the last 6 years.

RESULTS

In our study, 68 articles that fit the scope were selected and critically analyzed. These articles were organized considering the type of antitumor activity and their year of publication. Some compounds reported here demonstrated potent antitumor activity against several tumor types.

CONCLUSION

This review allowed us to highlight works that reported promising structures for the treatment of various cancer types and also demonstrated that the privileged structures thiazole, isatin and phthalimide are important in the design of new syntheses and molecular optimization of compounds with antitumor activity.

Phthalic anhydride (PA): a valuable substrate in organic transformations

This review has been centralized on applications of phthalic anhydride (PA) as a valuable and significant heterocyclic substrate in two- and multicomponent organic reactions. The article has been subdivided into the following parts: (i) PA introduction by focusing on its characterization, synthesizing procedure, and multiple-aspect applications. In addition, the previous review articles based on PA have also been indicated; (ii) the applications of PA as a substrate have been subdivided into parts with a glance on the reaction components numbers; (iii) the applications of PA in esterification reactions; and (iv) some examples of PA in multistep synthesis. The review covers the corresponding literature up to the end of 2022. According to the abovementioned classifications, PA is a potent substrate to design a wide range of heterocyclic compounds that possess various kinds of properties and applications in chemistry, industry, and pharmaceuticals.

3-Aminopropylsilatrane and Its Derivatives: A Variety of Applications

Silatranes arouse much research interest owing to their unique structure, unusual physical–chemical properties, and diverse biological activity. The application of some silatranes and their analogues has been discussed in several works. Meanwhile, a comprehensive review of the wide practical usage of silatranes is still absent in the literature. The ability of silatranes to mildly control hydrolysis allows them to form extremely stable and smooth siloxane monolayers almost on any surface. The high physiological activity of silatranes makes them prospective drug candidates. In the present review, based on the results of numerous previous studies, using the commercially available 3-aminopropylsilatrane and its hybrid derivatives, we have demonstrated the high potential of 1-organylsilatranes in various fields, including chemistry, biology, pharmaceuticals, medicine, agriculture, and industry. For example, these compounds can be employed as plant growth biostimulants, drugs, optical, catalytic, sorption, and special polymeric materials, as well as modern high-tech devices.

Novel hybrid isoindole-1,3(2H)-dione compounds containing a 1H-tetrazole moiety: Synthesis, biological evaluation, and molecular docking studies

In this study, novel hybrid isoindole-1,3(2H)-dione compounds (10 and 11) carrying a 1H-tetrazole moiety were synthesized, characterized and their inhibitory properties against xanthine oxidase (XO) and carbonic anhydrase isoenzymes (hCA I and hCA II) were investigated. Allopurinol for XO and acetazolamide for carbonic anhydrase isoenzymes were used as positive standards in inhibition studies. In addition, compounds 8 and 9, which were obtained in the intermediate step, were also investigated for their inhibition effects against the three enzymes. According to the enzyme inhibition results, hybrid isoindole-1,3(2H)-dione derivatives 10 and 11 showed significant inhibitory effects against all three enzymes. Surprisingly, compound 8, containing a SCN functional group, exhibited a greater inhibitory effect than the other compounds against hCA I and hCA II. The IC₅₀ values of compound 8 against hCA I and hCA II were found to be 3.698 ± 0.079 and 3.147 ± 0.083 µM, respectively. Compound 8 (IC₅₀  = 4.261 ± 0.034 μM) showed higher activity than allopurinol (IC₅₀  = 4.678 ± 0.029 μM) and the other compounds against XO, as well. These results clearly show the effect of the SCN group on the inhibition. In addition, in silico molecular docking studies were performed to understand the molecular interactions between each compound and enzymes, and the results were evaluated.

Visible-Light-Driven Redox Neutral Direct C-H Amination of Glycine Derivatives and Peptides with N-Acyloxyphthalimides

A room temperature, visible-light-promoted and redox neutral direct C-H amination of glycine and peptides has been firstly accomplished by using N-acyloxyphthalimide or -succinimide as nitrogen-radical precursor. The present strategy provides ways to introduce functionalities such as N-acyloxyphthalimide or -succinimide specifically to terminal glycine segment of peptides. Herein, mild conditions and high functional-group tolerance allow the preparation of non-natural α-amino acids and modification of corresponding peptides in this way.

Biodegradable and Biocompatible Silatrane Polymers

In this study, new biodegradable and biocompatible amphiphilic polymers were obtained by modifying the peripheral hydroxyl groups of branched polyethers and polyesters with organosilicon substituents. The structures of the synthesized polymers were confirmed by NMR and GPC. Organosilicon moieties of the polymers were formed by silatranes and trimethylsilyl blocks and displayed hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties, respectively. The effect of the ratio of hydrophilic to hydrophobic organosilicon structures on the surface activity and biological activity of macromolecules was studied, together with the effect on these activities of the macromolecules’ molecular weight and chemical structure. In particular, the critical micelle concentrations were determined, the effect of the structure of the polymers on their wetting with aqueous solutions on glass and parafilm was described, and the aggregation stability of emulsions was studied. Finally, the effect of the polymer structures on their antifungal activity and seed germination stimulation was examined.

Mechanism of Reactions of 1-Substituted Silatranes and Germatranes, 2,2-Disubstituted Silocanes and Germocanes, 1,1,1-Trisubstituted Hyposilatranes and Hypogermatranes with Alcohols (Methanol, Ethanol): DFT Study

The mechanism of reactions of silatranes and germatranes, and their bicyclic and monocyclic analogues with one molecule of methanol or ethanol, was studied at the Density Functional Theory (DFT) B3PW91/6-311++G(df,p) level of theory. Reactions of 1-substituted sil(germ)atranes, 2,2-disubstituted sil(germ)ocanes, and 1,1,1-trisubstituted hyposil(germ)atranes with alcohol (methanol, ethanol) proceed in one step through four-center transition states followed by the opening of a silicon or germanium skeleton and the formation of products. According to quantum chemical calculations, the activation energies and Gibbs energies of activation of reactions with methanol and ethanol are close, their values decrease in the series of atranes–ocanes–hypoatranes for interactions with both methanol and ethanol. The reactions of germanium-containing derivatives are characterized by lower activation energies in comparison with the reactions of corresponding silicon-containing compounds. The annular configurations of the product molecules with electronegative substituents are stabilized by the transannular N→X (X = Si, Ge) bond and different intramolecular hydrogen contacts with the participation of heteroatoms of substituents at the silicon or germanium.

Magnetic chitosan nanocomposite: As a novel catalyst for the synthesis of new derivatives of N-sulfonylamidine and N-sulfonylimidate

This study reports the synthesis and characterization of a highly active catalyst based on chelated copper iodide on magnetic chitosan-salicylaldehyde Schiff base. This catalyst was successfully used for the three-component reaction of N-propargylphthalimide, tosylazide, and NH or OH containing nucleophiles to access new classes of N-sulfonylamidine or N-sulfonylimidate derivatives. The products, which were constructed via an in situ generated sulfonyl keteneimine intermediate, were obtained in good to excellent yields. Short reaction times, easy separation and reusability without significant loss of catalyst activity were found to be the notable features of this synthetic protocol.

Privileged Structures in the Design of Potential Drug Candidates for Neglected Diseases

Background:

Privileged motifs are recurring in a wide range of biologically active compounds that reach different pharmaceutical targets and pathways and could represent a suitable start point to access potential candidates in the neglected diseases field. The current therapies to treat these diseases are based in drugs that lack of the desired effectiveness, affordable methods of synthesis and allow a way to emergence of resistant strains. Due the lack of financial return, only few pharmaceutical companies have been investing in research for new therapeutics for neglected diseases (ND).

Methods:

Based on the literature search from 2002 to 2016, we discuss how six privileged motifs, focusing phthalimide, isatin, indole, thiosemicarbazone, thiazole, and thiazolidinone are particularly recurrent in compounds active against some of neglected diseases.

Results:

It was observed that attention was paid particularly for Chagas disease, malaria, tuberculosis, schistosomiasis, leishmaniasis, dengue, African sleeping sickness (Human African Trypanosomiasis - HAT) and toxoplasmosis. It was possible to verify that, among the ND, antitrypanosomal and antiplasmodial activities were between the most searched. Besides, thiosemicarbazone moiety seems to be the most versatile and frequently explored scaffold. As well, phthalimide, isatin, thiazole, and thiazolidone nucleus have been also explored in the ND field.

Conclusion:

Some described compounds, appear to be promising drug candidates, while others could represent a valuable inspiration in the research for new lead compounds.

In vitro evaluation of cytotoxicity and leishmanicidal activity of phthalimido-thiazole derivatives

It is estimated that the worldwide prevalence of leishmaniasis is around 12 million individuals in 80 countries, with 400,000new cases per year. In the search for new leishmanicidal agents, the hybrid phthalimido-thiazoles have been identified as an important scaffold for drug design and discovery. The present study thus reports the in vitro activity of a series of phthalimido-thiazole derivatives. Cytotoxicity against a strain of L. infantum, Vero cells, J774 macrophages and peritoneal macrophages was evaluated, as well as nitric oxide (NO) production. Activity against amastigote and promastigote forms of L. infantum and microscopic changes in the parasite and intracellular targets of the parasite were achieved. The results show that the compounds arising from hybridization of phthalimide and 1,3-thiazole exhibit promising leishmanicidal activity. Compounds 2j and 2m were the most potent of the series tested and the parasites treated with these compounds exhibited ultrastructural changes, such as cell body shrinkage, loss of cellular membrane integrity, vacuolization of cytoplasm, membrane profiles surrounding organelles and swelling of mitochondria. The data showed that these compounds reduced the survival of intracellular amastigotes and presented low toxicity for mammalian cells. The compounds produced increased NO production compared to untreated cells in non-infected macrophages. Treated promastigote forms showed an increase in the number of cells stained with propidium iodide. The compounds brought about significant changes in mitochondrial membrane potential. According to the present study, phthalimido-thiazole compounds exhibit leishmanicidal activity and could be used to develop novel antileishmaniasis drugs and explore potential molecular targets.

Thioester-appended organosilatranes: synthetic investigations and application in the modification of magnetic silica surfaces

Thioester tethered organosilatranes were synthesized. The substituent effect on the absorption spectra and potential for binding with Cu²⁺were explored.

Organosilatranes with thioester-anchored heterocyclic ring assembly: Cu2+ ion binding and fabrication of hybrid silica nanoparticles

Thioester allied organosilatranes were synthesized by the CDI mediated coupling of carboxylic acids with mercaptopropylsilatrane. One of the silatrane was further immobilized onto silica nanospheres, characterized and tested for copper ion binding.