Chiral Pyridine-3,5-bis- (L-phenylalaninyl-L-leucinyl) Schiff Base Peptides as Potential Anticancer Agents: Design, Synthesis, and Molecular Docking Studies Targeting Lactate Dehydrogenase-A

A series of branched tetrapeptide Schiff bases 3–6 were designed and synthesized from corresponding tetrapeptide hydrazide 2 as a starting material.In vitroevaluation of the synthesized compounds 4–6 against breast MCF-7 carcinoma cells identified their excellent anticancer potency, with IC₅₀ ranging from 8.12 ± 0.14 to 17.55 ± 0.27 μM in comparison with the references, cisplatin and milaplatin (IC₅₀= 13.34 ± 0.11and 18.43 ± 0.13 μM, respectively). Furthermore, all derivatives demonstrated promising activity upon evaluation of theirin vitroandin vivosuppression of p53 ubiquitination and inhibition assessment for LDHA kinase. Finally, molecular docking studies were performed to predict the possible binding features of the potent derivatives within the ATP pocket of LDHA in an attempt to get a lead for developing a more potent LDHA inhibitor with anti-proliferative potency.

Synthesis and investigation of 3,5-bis-linear and macrocyclic tripeptidopyridine candidates by using l-valine,N,N′-(3,5-pyridinediyldicarbonyl)bis-dimethyl ester as synthon

Interest in the synthesis of heterocyclic organic molecules with peptide moieties has gained attention due to their potential biological activities. The current work aimed at synthesizing new macrocyclic tripeptide imides and evaluating their possible antimicrobial activities. A series of 11 derivatives were prepared from dimethyl 3,5-pyridinevalinyl ester either by NaOH or NH2NH2treatment, followed by cyclization and further reaction with NaOH or NH2NH2. The majority of synthesized derivatives showed promising antibacterial and antifungal activities in comparison to standard known antibiotics. Compounds5aand7bshowed the most potential antibacterial againstStaphylococcus aureusand antifungal activities againstCandida albicans, respectively.