Synthesis, anticancer activity and ADMET studies of N-(5-methyl-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)-4-[(3-substituted)ureido/thioureido] benzenesulfonamide derivatives

Synthesis, biological evaluation and molecular docking studies of novel 1,3,4-thiadiazoles as potential anticancer agents and human carbonic anhydrase inhibitors

Thiosemicarbazide and also 1,3,4-thiadiazole derivatives have been garnering substantial attention from researchers worldwide due to their expansive range of biological activities, encompassing antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer properties. Herein, we embarked on a comprehensive investigation in this study, introducing a novel series of thiosemicarbazides (3a-3i) and their corresponding 1,3,4-thiadiazole (4a-4i) derivatives. The compounds were meticulously designed, synthesized, and subjected to meticulous characterization using various spectroscopic methods such as FT-IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, and elemental analysis. Afterward, their potential anti-proliferative effectiveness was assessed using MTT assay against two cancer cell lines (U87 and HeLa) and normal fibroblast cells (L929). Among the compounds, 4d showed the highest cytotoxic activity against U87 and 4i against HeLa. Compound 3b exhibited selective cytotoxic activity against both cancer cells. Among the molecules with selective activity against the U87 cell line; 3a, 3b, 4d and 4e were further evaluated by caspase-3 activity levels, Bax and Bcl-2 protein expression, and total oxidant status assay. Besides, carbonic anhydrase IX activity studies were also performed in order to understand the underlying mechanism of action. The results indicated that compound 4e showed higher efficacy than standard acetazolamide (IC50 = 0.58 ± 0.02 µM) with an IC50 value of 0.03 ± 0.01 µM. Furthermore, molecular docking studies were carried out using carbonic anhydrase IX crystals to determine the compound's interactions with the enzyme's active sites. This comprehensive investigation sheds light on the intricate interplay between molecular structure and biological activity, providing valuable insights into the therapeutic potential of these compounds.

Synthesis, Characterization and Biological Evaluation of Novel Thiourea Derivatives

Objective: A new series of 4-[3-(substitutedphenyl)thioureido]-N-(6-chloropyrazin-2-yl)benzenesulfonamide were synthesized from sulfaclozine. Methods: All compounds were characterized by IR, 1H-NMR spectroscopic methods and elemental analysis. In addition to the antioxidant activity of the synthesis series, enzyme inhibition activities such as anticholinesterase, tyrosinase, α-amylase and α-glycosidase were determined for the first time in this study. Results: According to these biological activity test results, compound 2a in the DPPH, 2c in the ABTS˙+ assay exhibited more antioxidant activity than reference standard. All thiourea derivatives demonstrated good BChE inhibitory activity than galantamine. Among the compounds, 2e and 2f showed the best tyrosinase enzyme inhibition activity, while 2g had the best α-amylase and α-glucosidase enzyme inhibition activity. In addition, we evaluated the druglikeness properties of compounds and their oral bioavailability were also found to be high. Conclusion: Thiourea derivatives exhibited remarkable antioxidant activity and enzyme inhibition activity against tyrosinase, cholinesterase, α-amylase and α-glucosidase.

Induction of Divergent Cell Death Pathways by Urea and Carbohydrazide Derivatives

BACKGROUND

The complexity of cancer biology and the development of chemotherapy resistance are two main obstacles to cancer treatment and necessitate novel anticancer molecules that target different cell death pathways. Modulation of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and subsequent activation of the unfolded protein response (UPR) has been proposed as potential chemotherapeutic target, as prolonged ER stress can lead to cell death via apoptosis or necrosis.

OBJECTIVE

The present study aims to evaluate the molecular mechanism underlying the cytotoxic activity of selected urea and carbohydrazide derivatives.

METHODS

Cell proliferation assays were performed on HeLa, Capan1, MCF7, HCC1937, and MRC5 cell lines by WST-1 assay. The expression levels of selected ER stress, autophagy, and apoptosis marker proteins were compared by immunoblotting to characterize the underlying mechanism of cytotoxicity. Flow cytometry was used to detect apoptosis.

RESULTS

Of the tested cytotoxic compounds, 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, and 1b dramatically and 5b moderately increased ER stress-related CHOP protein levels. Interestingly, 5b but not 3a, 4a, 5a, 6a, or 1b increased the expression of pro-apoptotic proteins such as cleaved PARP-1 and cleaved caspase-3 and -7. Flow-cytometry analysis further confirmed that the cytotoxic activity of 5b but not the other compounds is mediated by apoptosis, which is also demonstrated by a significant increase in the percentage of late apoptotic cells (7-AAD/annexin V double-positive cells).

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that changing a substituent from trifluoromethyl to nitro in urea and carbohydrazide core structure alters the cell death mechanism from apoptosis to an apoptosis-independent cell death pathway. This study shows an example of how such simple modifications of a core chemical structure could cause the induction of divergent cell death pathways.

The inhibition performance of a novel benzenesulfonamide-based benzoxazine compound in the corrosion of X60 carbon steel in an acidizing environment

The inhibition performance of a novel benzenesulfonamide-based benzoxazine compound in the corrosion of X60 carbon steel an acidizing environment has been examined including some highly electronegative atoms.

A robust photoluminescence screening assay identifies uracil-DNA glycosylase inhibitors against prostate cancer

Many cancers have developed resistance to 5-FU, due to removal by the enzyme uracil-DNA glycosylase (UDG), a type of base excision repair enzyme (BER) that can excise uracil and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) from DNA. However, the development of UDG inhibitor screening methods, especially for the rapid and efficient screening of natural product/natural product-like compounds, is still limited so far. We developed herein a robust time-resolved photoluminescence method for screening UDG inhibitors, which could significantly improve sensitivity over the screening method based on the conventional steady-state spectroscopy, reducing the substantial fluorescence background interference. As a proof-of-concept, two potential UDG inhibitors were identified from a database of natural products and approved drugs. Co-treatment of these two compounds with 5-FU showed synergistic cytotoxicity, providing the basis for treating drug-resistant cancers. Overall, this method provides an avenue for the rapid screening of small molecule regulators of other BER enzyme activities that can avoid false negatives arising from the background fluorescence.

The discovery of UDG inhibitors against prostate cancer by using a robust photoluminescence screening assay that can avoid false negatives arising from the background fluorescence.