Cytotoxicity effects and biochemical investigation of novel tetrakis-phthalocyanines bearing 2-thiocytosine moieties with molecular docking studies

Synthesis, characterization, DNA interaction, molecular docking, and α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition studies of a water soluble Zn(II) phthalocyanine

In this study, 2(3),9(10),16(17),23(24)-tetrakis-[(N-methyl-(1-benzylpiperidin-4-yl)oxy)phthalocyaninato]zinc(II) iodide (ZnPc-2) was synthesized and characterized using spectral methods (FT-IR, 1H-NMR, UV-Vis and mass spectroscopy). The interaction of ZnPc-2 with DNA was investigated by using the UV/Vis titrimetric method, thermal denaturation profile, agarose gel electrophoresis and molecular docking studies. Additionally, the antidiabetic activity of ZnPc-2 was revealed spectroscopically by studying α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition activities. The spectroscopic results indicated that ZnPc-2 effectively binds to calf thymus-DNA (CT-DNA) with a Kb value of 7.5 × 104 M-1 and interacts with CT-DNA via noncovalent binding mode. Gel electrophoresis results also show that ZnPc-2 binds strongly to DNA molecules and exhibits effective nuclease activity even at low concentrations. Furthermore, docking studies suggest that ZnPc-2 exhibits a stronger binding tendency with DNA than the control compounds ethidium bromide and cisplatin. Consequently, due to its strong DNA binding and nuclease activity, ZnPc-2 may be suitable for antimicrobial and anticancer applications after further toxicological tests. Additionally, antidiabetic studies showed that ZnPc-2 had both α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition activity. Moreover, the α-glucosidase inhibitory effect of ZnPc-2 was approximately 3500 times higher than that of the standard inhibitor, acarbose. Considering these results, it can be said that ZnPc-2 is a moderate α-amylase and a highly effective α-glucosidase inhibitor. This suggests that ZnPc-2 may have the potential to be used as a therapeutic agent for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

Structure-based inhibition of acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase with 2-Aryl-6-carboxamide benzoxazole derivatives: synthesis, enzymatic assay, and in silico studies

An important research topic is the discovery of multifunctional compounds targeting different disease-causing components. This research aimed to design and synthesize a series of 2-aryl-6-carboxamide benzoxazole derivatives that inhibit cholinesterases on both the peripheral anionic and catalytic anionic sides. Compounds (7-48) were prepared from 4-amino-3-hydroxybenzoic acid in three steps. The Ellman test, molecular docking with Maestro, and molecular dynamics simulation studies with Desmond were done (Schrodinger, 12.8.117). Compound 36, the most potent compound among the 42 new compounds synthesized, had an inhibitory concentration of IC50 12.62 nM for AChE and IC50 25.45 nM for BChE (whereas donepezil was 69.3 nM and 63.0 nM, respectively). Additionally, compound 36 had docking values ​​of - 7.29 kcal/mol for AChE and - 6.71 kcal/mol for BChE (whereas donepezil was - 6.49 kcal/mol and - 5.057 kcal/mol, respectively). Furthermore, molecular dynamics simulations revealed that compound 36 is stable in the active gorges of both AChE (average RMSD: 1.98 Å) and BChE (average RMSD: 2.2 Å) (donepezil had average RMSD: 1.65 Å and 2.7 Å, respectively). The results show that compound 36 is a potent, selective, mixed-type dual inhibitor of both acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase. It does this by binding to both the catalytically active and peripheral anionic sites of cholinesterases at the same time. These findings show that target compounds may be useful for establishing the structural basis for new anti-Alzheimer agents.

Water-soluble Pillar[5]arene-based drug candidates for lung and breast cancer

The objective of research was to examine the likely anticancer effectiveness of distinct pillar[5] arene derivatives, ws-penta-P[5] and ws-deca-P[5], on breast and lung cancer cell lines in vitro. To achieve this goal, breast cancer (MCF7) cells, lung cancer (A549) cells, healthy cells (HEK293) were utilized. The IC50 dose of ws-penta-P[5] and ws-deca-P[5] was determined using the MTT method. Both treatment (pillar[5] arene applied) and control (pillar[5] arene not applied) groups were established for all three cell lines. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was used to evaluate changes in gene expression following pillar[5] arene treatment. Flow cytometry analysis was used to determine apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. The treatment group and control group results were compared after the study. The results revealed that in both cell lines treated with ws-deca-P[5], proapoptotic gene expressions were upregulated, while antiapoptotic gene expressions and caspase activation gene expressions were down-regulated. The flow cytometry apoptosis and cell cycle analysis in treatment group compared to the control, it was observed that the apoptosis rate increased in the ws-deca-P[5] and ws-deca-P[5] were shown to cause G0/G1 phase arrest in both cell groups. Results from our study that pillar[5] arene derivatives had the potential for treating breast and lung cancer, and more research is required in this area.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Synthesis and Biological Activity of Some Bromophenols and Their Derivatives Including Natural Products

In addition to the first synthesis of the natural bromophenol butyl 2-(3,5-dibromo-4-hydroxyphenyl)acetate (1), indene derivatives 34 and 35 were synthesized from 3-phenylpropenal derivatives in BBr3 medium. Five known natural bromophenols and some derivatives were synthesized by known methods. Cholinesterase (ChEs) inhibitors reduce the breakdown of acetylcholine and are used in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia symptoms. The inhibition effects of all obtained compounds were examined towards acetylcholinesterase (AChE), butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) and α-glycosidase enzymes. All synthesized compounds demonstrated the strong inhibition effects against both cholinergic enzymes. For determination of Ki values of novel bromophenols Lineweaver-Burk graphs were obtained. Ki values were found in the ranging of 0.13-14.74 nM for AChE, 5.11-23.95 nM for BChE, and 63.96-206.78 nM for α-glycosidase, respectively. All bromophenols and their derivatives exhibit effective inhibition profile when compared to positive controls.

Vinyl functionalized 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazolium salts: Synthesis and biological activities

A series of vinyl functionalized 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazolium salts are synthesized. All compounds were fully characterized by elemental analyses, MS, ¹ H-NMR, ¹³ C-NMR, and IR spectroscopy techniques. Enzyme inhibition is a very active area of research in drug design and development. In this study, the synthesized novel benzimidazolium salts were evaluated toward the human erythrocyte carbonic anhydrase I (hCA I), and II (hCA II) isoenzymes, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) enzymes. They demonstrated highly potent inhibition ability against hCA I with K_i values of 484.8 ± 62.6-1389.7 ± 243.2 nM, hCA II with K_i values of 298.9 ± 55.7-926.1 ± 330.0 nM, α-glycosidase with K_i values of 170.3 ± 27-760.1 ± 269 μM, AChE with K_i values of 27.1 ± 3-77.6 ± 1.7 nM, and BChE with K_i values of 21.0 ± 5-61.3 ± 15 nM. As a result, novel vinyl functionalized 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazolium salts (1a-g) exhibited effective inhibition profiles toward studied metabolic enzymes. Therefore, we believe that these results may contribute to the development of new drugs particularly to treat some global disorders including glaucoma, Alzheimer's disease, and diabetes.

Benzimidazolium Salts Containing Trifluoromethoxybenzyl: Synthesis, Characterization, Crystal Structure, Molecular Docking Studies and Enzymes Inhibitory Properties

The method for producing 4-trifluoromethoxybenzyl substituted benzimidazolium salts is described in this article. The method is based on the reaction of 4-trifluoromethoxybenzyl substituent alkylating agent with 1-alkylbenzimidazole. This method yielded 1-(4-trifluoromethoxybenzyl)-3-alkylbenzimidazolium bromide salts. These benzimidazolium salts were characterized by using ¹ H-NMR, ¹³ C-NMR, FT-IR spectroscopy, and elemental analysis techniques. The crystal structure of 1f was enlightened by single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. Also, the enzyme inhibition effects of the synthesised compounds were investigated. They demonstrated highly potent inhibition effect on acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and carbonic anhydrases (hCAs) (K_i values are in the range of 7.24±0.99 to 39.12±5.66 nM, 5.57±0.96 to 43.07±11.76 nM, and 4.38±0.43 to 18.68±3.60 nM for AChE, hCA I, and hCA II, respectively). In molecular docking study, the interactions of active compounds showing activity against AChE and hCAs enzymes were examined. The most active compound 1f has -10.90 kcal/mol binding energy value against AChE enzyme, and the potential structure compound 1e, which has activity against hCA I and hCA II enzymes, was -7.51 and -8.93 kcal/mol, respectively.

Biological activity and molecular docking studies of some N-phenylsulfonamides against cholinesterases and carbonic anhydrase isoenzymes

In this research, a series of N-phenylsulfonamide derivatives (1-12) were designed, synthesized and investigated for their inhibitory potencies against carbonic anhydrase isoenzymes I, II and IX (hCA I, hCA II, and hCA IX) and cholinesterases (ChE), namely, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE). These compounds, whose inhibition potentials were evaluated for the first time, were characterized by spectroscopic techniques (¹ H- and ¹³ C NMR and FT-IR). CA isoenzyme inhibitors are significant therapeutic targets, especially owing to their preventive/activation potential in the therapy processes of some diseases such as cancer, osteoporosis, and glaucoma. On the other hand, Cholinesterase inhibitors are valuable molecules with biological importance that can be employed in the therapy process of Alzheimer's patients. The results showed that the tested molecules had enzyme inhibition activities ranging from 9.7 to 93.7 nM against these five metabolic enzymes. Among the tested molecules, the methoxy and the hydroxyl group-containing compounds 10, 11, and 12 exhibited more enzyme inhibition activities when compared to standard compounds acetazolamide (AAZ), sulfapyridine, and sulfadiazine for CA isoenzymes and neostigmine for ChE, respectively. Of these three molecules, compound 12, which had a hydroxyl group in the para position in the aromatic ring, was determined to be the most active molecule against all enzymes. In silico work, molecular docking has also shown similar results and consistent with the experimental data in the study. As a result, we can say that some of the tested molecules might be used as promising inhibitor candidates for further studies on this topic.

A review on α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of first row transition metal complexes: a futuristic strategy for treatment of type 2 diabetes

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is characterized by high blood glucose levels and has emerged as a controversial public health issue worldwide. The increasing number of patients with T2DM on one hand, and serious long-term complications of the disease such as obesity, neuropathy, and vascular disorders on the other hand, have induced a huge economic impact on society globally. In this regard, inhibition of α-glucosidase, the enzyme responsible for the hydrolysis of carbohydrates in the body has been the main therapeutic approach to the treatment of T2DM. As α-glucosidase inhibitors (α-GIs) have occupied a special position in the current research and prescription drugs are generally α-GIs, researchers have been encouraged to design and synthesize novel and efficient inhibitors. Previously, the presence of a sugar moiety seemed to be crucial for designing α-GIs since they can attach to the carbohydrate binding site of the enzyme mimicking the structure of disaccharides or oligosaccharides. However, inhibitors lacking glycosyl structures have also shown potent inhibitory activity and development of non-sugar based inhibitors is accelerating. In this respect, in vitro anti-α-glucosidase activity of metal complexes has attracted lots of attention and this paper has reviewed the inhibitory activity of first-row transition metal complexes toward α-glucosidase and discussed their probable mechanisms of action.