Efficacy of hydroxychloroquine in hand osteoarthritis: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Symptoms of hand osteoarthritis result in activity limitations and lower quality of life. Hydroxychloroquine, which has been used successfully in the treatment of many autoimmune diseases, can suppress inflammation and might also be beneficial in hand osteoarthritis. METHODS: We plan to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trial to determine the symptom-modifying effect of hydroxychloroquine in hand osteoarthritis. We will search PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science using a comprehensive strategy. The related conference proceedings and reference lists of the included studies will also be checked to identify additional studies. Two reviewers will screen retrieved records, extract information and assess the risk of bias independently. Stata v15.1 software will be used to conduct data synthesis. RESULTS: This study will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal for publication. CONCLUSION: We hope it will provide a relatively comprehensive reference for clinical practice and future relevant clinical trials. INPLASY REGISTRATION NUMBER: INPLASY2020110005.

New Butenolides and Cyclopentenones from Saline Soil-Derived Fungus Aspergillus Sclerotiorum.

Three new γ-hydroxyl butenolides (1-3), a pair of new enantiomeric spiro-butenolides (4a and 4b), a pair of enantiomeric cyclopentenones (5a new and 5b new natural), and six known compounds (6-11), were isolated from Aspergillus sclerotiorum. Their structures were established by spectroscopic data and electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectra. Two pairs of enantiomers [(+)/(-)-6c and (+)/(-)-6d] obtained from the reaction of 6 with acetyl chloride (AcCl) confirmed that 6 was a mixture of two pairs of enantiomers. In addition, the X-ray data confirmed that 7 was also a racemate. The new metabolites (1-5) were evaluated for their inhibitory activity against cancer and non-cancer cell lines. As a result, compound 1 exhibited moderate cytotoxicity to HL60 and A549 with IC50 values of 6.5 and 8.9 µM, respectively, and weak potency to HL-7702 with IC50 values of 17.6 µM. Furthermore, compounds 1-9 were screened for their antimicrobial activity using the micro-broth dilution method. MIC values of 200 µg/mL were obtained for compounds 2 and 3 towards Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, while compound 8 exhibited a MIC of 50 µ/mL towards Candida albicans.

Potential Antiviral Xanthones from a Coastal Saline Soil Fungus Aspergillus iizukae.

Five new (1⁻5) and two known xanthones (6 and 7), one of the latter (6) obtained for the first time as a natural product, together with three known anthraquinones, questin, penipurdin A, and questinol, were isolated from the coastal saline soil-derived Aspergillus iizukae by application of an OSMAC (one strain many compounds) approach. Their structures were determined by interpretation of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectroscopy (HRESIMS) data, as well as comparison of these data with those of related known compounds. Antiviral activity of xanthones 1-7 was evaluated through the cytopathic effect (CPE) inhibition assay, and compound 2 exhibited distinctly strong activity towards influenza virus (H1N1), herpes simplex virus types 1 (HSV-1) and 2 (HSV-2) with IC50 values of 44.6, 21.4, and 76.7 µM, respectively, which indicated that it was worth to further investigate it as a potential lead compound. The preliminary structure-activity relationship of the xanthones is discussed.