Evaluation of Novel Chalcone-Thiosemicarbazones Derivatives as Potential Anti-Leishmania amazonensis Agents and Its HSA Binding Studies

Trypanocidal potential of synthetic p-aminochalcones: In silico and in vitro evaluation

Chagas disease (CD) is a neglected tropical disease of worldwide health concern, caused by the flagellate protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi), endemic in Latin America and present in North America and Europe. The WHO recommended drug for CD, benznidazole has low safety profile and several limitations. Therefore, an entity with better therapeutic potential to treat CD is required. Chalcones are an important class of compounds, which have shown antichagasic potential. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the activity of synthetic p-aminochalcones against T. cruzi. Chalcones 1 and 2 were synthesized by Claisen-Schmidt condensation and characterized by both spectroscopic and theoretical methods. Initially, they were submitted to molecular docking simulations using cruzain and trypanothione reductase (TR) enzymes. It was expected to observe the possible interactions of chalcones with the catalytic site and other important regions of these main pharmacological targets of T. cruzi. Their cytotoxicity within host cells were assessed by MTT reduction assay using LLC-MK2 cells, with CC50 = 85.6 ± 9.2 µM and 1115 ± 381.7 µM for chalcones 1 and 2, respectively. These molecules were also tested against epimastigote and trypomastigote life forms of T. cruzi, causing reduction in the number of viable parasites. For the evaluation of the effect on intracellular amastigotes, infected LLC-MK2 cells were incubated with the chalcones for 24 h, causing reduction in the percentage of infected cells and the number of amastigotes/100 cells. Finally, flow cytometry assays were performed for analyzing cell death mechanisms (7-AAD/AxPE labelling), cytoplasmic ROS accumulation (DCFH-DA assay) and mitochondrial transmembrane potential disruption (Rho123 assay). Both chalcones (1 and 2) caused membrane damage, ROS accumulation and mitochondrial depolarization. In conclusion, the synthetic p-aminochalcones presented trypanocidal effect, causing membrane damage and oxidative stress. Their mechanism of action may be related to cruzain and TR inhibition.

Synthesis, biological assessment, and computational investigations of nifedipine and monastrol analogues as anti-leishmanial major and anti-microbial agents

Leishmaniasis includes a range of parasitic diseases caused by numerous types of the protozoan kinetoplastid parasite. Fungal and bacterial pathogens have led to infectious illnesses causing some main public health problem in current years. A series of dihydropyridine and tetrahydropyrimidine derivatives having fluoro, bromo, and nitro substituents at para-phenyl ring on C4 of dihydropyridine and tetrahydropyrimidine rings were synthesized. Then, anti-leishmanial and antimicrobial potencies of compounds were assessed. All compounds were synthesized via Hantzsch and Biginelli reactions. All derivatives were evaluated for their anti-leishmanial and antimicrobial activities. Moreover, docking and molecular dynamics simulation calculations of the compounds in PRT1 binding site were performed to report the results of anti-leishmanial and antimicrobial activities. Compounds 4a and 4b showed the highest anti-amastigote and anti-promastigote activities. Compound 4a revealed the highest antimicrobial activity against E. coli, P. aeruginosa, and C. albicans strains. In addition, compound 4c showed the highest activity against S. aureus. The fluoro, bromo, and nitro substituents in para-position of phenyl group at C4 of dihydropyridine and tetrahydropyrimidine moieties as well as the bulk and length of the chain linking to the ester moieties are essential for anti-leishmanial and anti-microbial activities of these derivatives. Low cytotoxicity was shown by most of derivatives against macrophages. The molecular docking studies were in agreement with in vitro assay. Moreover, hydrogen binds, RMSF, RMSD, and Rg, strongly showed the steady binding of 4a and 4b compounds in PRT1 active site.

Antiviral and antimicrobial applications of chalcones and their derivatives: From nature to greener synthesis

Chalcones and their derivatives have been widely studied due to their versatile pharmacological and biological activities, such as anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, and antitumor effects. These compounds have shown suitable antiviral effects through the selective targeting of a variety of viral enzymes, including lactate dehydrogenase, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), fumarate reductase, protein tyrosine phosphatase, topoisomerase-II, protein kinases, integrase/protease, and lactate/isocitrate dehydrogenase, among others. Chalcones and their derivatives have displayed excellent potential for combating pathogenic bacteria and fungi (especially, multidrug-resistant bacteria). However, relevant mechanisms should be further explored, focusing on inhibitory effects against DNA gyrase B, UDP-N-acetylglucosamine enolpyruvyl transferase (MurA), and efflux pumps (e.g., NorA), among others. In addition, the antifungal and antiparasitic activities of these compounds (e.g., antitrypanosomal and antileishmanial properties) have prompted additional explorations. Nonetheless, systematic analysis of the relevant mechanisms, biosafety issues, and pharmacological properties, as well as clinical translation studies, are vital for practical applications. Herein, recent advancements pertaining to the antibacterial, antiviral, antiparasitic, and antifungal activities of chalcones and their derivatives are deliberated, focusing on the relevant mechanisms of action, crucial challenges, and future prospects. Furthermore, due to the great importance of greener and more sustainable synthesis of these valuable compounds, especially on an industrial scale, the progress made in this field has been briefly discussed. Hopefully, this review can serve as a catalyst for researchers to delve deeper into the exploration and designing of novel chalcone compounds with medicinal properties, especially against pathogenic viruses and multidrug-resistant bacteria as major causes of concern for human health.

Exploration of Thiourea-Based Scaffolds for the Construction of Bacterial Ureases Inhibitors

A series of 32 thiourea-based urease inhibitors were synthesized and evaluated against native bacterial enzyme and whole cells of Sporosarcina pasteurii and Proteus mirabilis strains. The proposed inhibitors represented structurally diverse thiosemicarbazones and thiocarbohydrazones, benzyl-substituted thiazolyl thioureas, 1H-pyrazole-1-carbothioamides, and dihydropirimidine-2(1H)-thiones. Kinetic characteristics with purified S. pasteurii enzyme determined low micromolar inhibitors within each structural group. (E)-2-(1-Phenylethylidene)hydrazine-1-carbothioamide 19 (Ki = 0.39 ± 0.01 μM), (E)-2-(4-methylbenzylidene)hydrazine-1-carbothioamide 16 (Ki = 0.99 ± 0.04 μM), and N'-((1E,2E)-1,3-diphenylallylidene)hydrazinecarbothiohydrazide 29 (Ki = 2.23 ± 0.19 μM) were used in modeling studies that revealed sulfur ion coordination of the active site nickel ion and hydrogen bonds between the amide group and the side chain of Asp363 and Ala366 carbonyl moiety. Whole-cell studies proved the activity of compounds in Gram-positive and Gram-negative microorganisms. Ureolysis control observed in P. mirabilis PCM 543 (e.g., IC50 = 304 ± 14 μM for 1-benzyl-3-(4-(4-hydroxyphenyl)thiazol-2-yl)thiourea 52) is a valuable achievement, as urease is recognized as a major virulence factor of this urinary tract pathogen.

Novel Zn(II)-complex with hybrid chalcone-thiosemicarbazone ligand: Synthesis, characterization, and inhibitory effect on HTLV-1-infected MT-2 leukemia cells

Chalcone and thiosemicarbazone have attracted attention due to their easy synthetic procedure and high success in the development of antiviral and antitumor, however, there are few biological data on the evaluation of chalcone-thiosemicarbazone hybrids and their complexation with metal ions. In this sense, the present work reports the synthesis and characterization of the hybrid (Z)-2-((E)-3-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-phenylallylidene)hydrazine-1-carbothioamide (CTCl) and its Zn(II)-complex (CTCl-Zn). The compounds were cell-based evaluated in terms of cytotoxicity against human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) infected leukemia cells (MT-2) and the experimental data were correlated with molecular docking calculations. The ligand and Zn(II)-complex were easily synthesized with a good yield - 57% and 79%, respectively. The dynamic of E/Z isomers with respect to the imine bond configuration of CTCl was evidenced by 1H NMR experiments in DMSO‑d6, while the X-ray diffraction of CTCl-Zn showed that Zn(II) ion is tetracoordinated to two ligands in a bidentate mode and the metal ion lies on an intermediate geometry between the see-saw and trigonal pyramid. The ligand and complex exhibited low toxicity and the Zn(II)-complex is more cytotoxic than the ligand, with the corresponding IC50 value of 30.01 and 47.06 μM. Both compounds had a pro-apoptotic effect without the release of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and they can interact with DNA via minor grooves driven by van der Waals forces.

Small molecules containing chalcogen elements (S, Se, Te) as new warhead to fight neglected tropical diseases

Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) encompass a group of infectious diseases with a protozoan etiology, high incidence, and prevalence in developing countries. As a result, economic factors constitute one of the main obstacles to their management. Endemic countries have high levels of poverty, deprivation and marginalization which affect patients and limit their access to proper medical care. As a matter of fact, statistics remain uncollected in some affected areas due to non-reporting cases. World Health Organization and other organizations proposed a plan for the eradication and control of the vector, although many of these plans were halted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite of the available drugs to treat these pathologies, it exists a lack of effectiveness against several parasite strains. Treatment protocols for diseases such as American trypanosomiasis (Chagas disease), leishmaniasis, and human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) have not achieved the desired results. Unfortunately, these drugs present limitations such as side effects, toxicity, teratogenicity, renal, and hepatic impairment, as well as high costs that have hindered the control and eradication of these diseases. This review focuses on the analysis of a collection of scientific shreds of evidence with the aim of identifying novel chalcogen-derived molecules with biological activity against Chagas disease, leishmaniasis and HAT. Compounds illustrated in each figure share the distinction of containing at least one chalcogen element. Sulfur (S), selenium (Se), and tellurium (Te) have been grouped and analyzed in accordance with their design strategy, chemical synthesis process and biological activity. After an exhaustive revision of the related literature on S, Se, and Te compounds, 183 compounds presenting excellent biological performance were gathered against the different causative agents of CD, leishmaniasis and HAT.

Conformational Properties of New Thiosemicarbazone and Thiocarbohydrazone Derivatives and Their Possible Targets

The structure assignment and conformational analysis of thiosemicarbazone KKI15 and thiocarbohydrazone KKI18 were performed through homonuclear and heteronuclear 2D Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy (2D-COSY, 2D-NOESY, 2D-HSQC, and 2D-HMBC) and quantum mechanics (QM) calculations using Functional Density Theory (DFT). After the structure identification of the compounds, various conformations of the two compounds were calculated using DFT. The two molecules showed the most energy-favorable values when their two double bonds adopted the E configuration. These configurations were compatible with the spatial correlations observed in the 2D-NOESY spectrum. In addition, due to the various isomers that occurred, the energy of the transition states from one isomer to another was calculated. Finally, molecular binding experiments were performed to detect potential targets for KKI15 and KKI18 derived from SwissAdme. In silico molecular binding experiments showed favorable binding energy values for all four enzymes studied. The strongest binding energy was observed in the enzyme butyrylcholinesterase. ADMET calculations using the preADMET and pKCSm software showed that the two molecules appear as possible drug leads.

Recent advancements in anti-leishmanial research: Synthetic strategies and structural activity relationships

Leishmaniasis is a parasitic neglected tropical disease caused by various species of Leishmania parasite. Despite tremendous advancements in the therapeutic sector and drug development strategies, still the existing anti-leishmanial agents are associated with some clinical issues like drug resistance, toxicity and selectivity. Therefore, several research groups are continuously working towards the development of new therapeutic candidates to overcome these issues. Many potential heterocyclic moieties have been explored for this purpose including triazoles, chalcones, chromone, thiazoles, thiosemicarbazones, indole, quinolines, etc. It is evident from the literature that the majority of anti-leishmanial agents act by interacting with key regulators including PTR-I, DHFR, LdMetAP1, MAPK, 14 α-demethylase and pteridine reductase-I, etc. Also, these tend to induce the production of ROS which causes damage to parasites. In the present compilation, authors have summarized various significant synthetic procedures for anti-leishmanial agents reported in recent years. A brief description of the pharmacological potentials of synthesized compounds along with important aspects related to structural activity relationship has been provided. Important docking outcomes highlighting the possible mode of interaction for the reported compounds have also been included. This review would be helpful to the scientific community to design newer strategies and also to develop novel therapeutic candidates against leishmaniasis.

Monosaccharides interact weakly with human serum albumin. Insights for the functional perturbations on the binding capacity of albumin

Monosaccharides, e.g. fructose, glucose, and arabinose are present in most foods consumed daily, whether, in natural or industrialized forms, and their concentration in the human bloodstream can impact the formation of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs, prevalent in people with diabetes) impacting the profile of Human Serum Albumin (HSA) in biodistribution of endogenous and exogenous compounds. Multiple spectroscopic techniques (UV-vis, circular dichroism, steady-state, and time-resolved fluorescence) combined with molecular docking showed that carbohydrates interact weakly and spontaneously via a ground-state association with HSA. The binding is enthalpically and entropically driven in the subdomain IIA (site I) and perturb weakly the secondary structure of the albumin. Hydrogen bonding and van der Waals forces are the main intermolecular interactions involved in the ligand binding, as well as hydrophobic effects related to the release of hydration shell upon ligand binding. Overall, the results indicated that an increase in glucose, fructose or arabinose level in the human bloodstream may cause functional perturbation on the binding capacity of albumin. Therefore, there is the necessity of carbohydrate level control in the bloodstream to not compromise the interaction and distribution of exogenous and endogenous compounds by HSA.