Isolation and biological activity of azocine and azocane alkaloids.

Thousands of known alkaloids contain a nitrogen (N) heterocycle. While five-, six- and seven-membered N-heterocycles (ie: pyrroles, imidazoles, indoles, pyridines and azepines and their saturated variants) are common, those with an eight-membered N-heterocycle are comparatively rare. This review discusses the structure and bioactivity of alkaloids that contain an azocine (or saturated azocane) ring, and the array of sources whence they originate.

Preparation of a thiols ß-cyclodextrin/gold nanoparticles-coated open tubular column for capillary electrochromatography enantioseparations.

Inspired by the distinct chemical and physical properties of nanoparticles, here a novel open-tubular capillary electrochromatography column was prepared by electrostatic assembly of poly(diallydimethylammonium chloride) onto the inner surface of a fused-silica capillary, followed by self-adsorption of negatively charged SH-ß-cyclodextrin/gold nanoparticles. The formation of the SH-ß-cyclodextrin/gold nanoparticles coated capillary was confirmed and characterized by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectrometry. The results of scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectrometry studies indicated that SH-ß-cyclodextrin/gold nanoparticles were successfully coated on the inner wall of the capillary column. The performance of the SH-ß-cyclodextrin/gold nanoparticles coated capillary was validated by the analysis of six pairs of chiral drugs, namely zopiclone, carvedilol, salbutamol, terbutaline sulfate, phenoxybenzamine hydrochloride, and ibuprofen. Satisfactory enantioseparation results were achieved, confirming the use of gold nanoparticles as the support could enhance the phase ratio of the open-tubular capillary column. Additionally, the stability and reproducibility of the SH-ß-cyclodextrin/gold nanoparticles coated capillary column were also investigated. Then, this proposed method was well validated with good linearity (≥0.999), recovery (90.0-93.5%) and repeatability, and was successfully used for enantioseparation of ibuprofen in spiked plasma samples, which indicated the new column's potential usage in biological analysis.

A novel open-tubular capillary electrochromatography using carboxymethyl-ß-cyclodextrin functionalized gold nanoparticles as chiral stationary phase.

Enantioselective open tubular capillary electrochromatography with carboxymethyl-ß-cyclodextrin conjugated gold nanoparticles as stationary phase was developed. This novel open tubular column was fabricated through layer-by-layer self-assembly of gold nanoparticles on a 3-mercaptopropyl-trimethoxysilane-modified fused-silica capillary and subsequent surface functionalization of the gold nanoparticles through self-assembly of 6-mercapto-ß-cyclodextrin. The 6-mercapto-ß-cyclodextrin was firstly synthesized and determined by extensive spectroscopic data. Scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis spectroscopy, and electroosmotic flow experiments were carried out to characterize the prepared open tubular column. Then, the separation effectiveness of the open tubular column was verified by two pairs of ɑ-tetralones derivatives enantiomers and two pairs of basic drug enantiomers (tramadol hydrochloride and zopiclone) as mode analytes. Factors that influence the enantioseparation were optimized, and under the optimized conditions, satisfactory separation results were obtained for the four enantiomers: compound A, compound B, tramadol hydrochloride, and zopiclone with resolutions of 3.79, 1.56, 1.03, 1.60, respectively. For the combination of gold nanoparticles and negatively charged carboxymethyl-ß-cyclodextrin, the open tubular column exhibited wider separation range for neutral and basic drugs. Moreover, the repeatability and stability of the column were studied through the run-to-run and day-to-day investigations.

Investigation of deep eutectic solvents as additives to ß-CD for enantiomeric separations of Zopiclone, Salbutamol, and Amlodipine by CE.

The enantioseparation of chiral drugs via CE was first investigated using ß-CD as chiral additive and deep eutectic solvents (DESs) as auxiliary additive. The results showed that improved separation of tested chiral drugs was obtained in the presence of DESs and ß-CD compared to the single ß-CD separation system. With the optimized condition, resolutions of DESs applied ß-CD separation system for rac-Zopiclone, rac-Salbutamol, and rac-Amlodipine increased 3-4.2 times as single ß-CD separation system. The resolutions reached 4.74, 6.37, and 9.67, respectively. The results demonstrate that DESs are viable additives to CD system in CE for the separation of the chiral drugs.

WCK 4234, a novel diazabicyclooctane potentiating carbapenems against Enterobacteriaceae, Pseudomonas and Acinetobacter with class A, C and D ß-lactamases.

Background: Several diazabicyclooctanes (DBOs) are under development as inhibitors of class A and C ß-lactamases. Inhibition of OXA (class D) carbapenemases is variable, with those of Acinetobacter spp. remaining notably resistant. We describe a novel DBO, WCK 4234 (Wockhardt), with distinctive activity against OXA carbapenemases. Methods: MICs of imipenem and meropenem were determined by CLSI agar dilution with WCK 4234 added at 4 or 8 mg/L. Test organisms were clinical Enterobacteriaceae, Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa with carbapenemases or carbapenem resistance via porin loss plus AmpC or ESBL activity. AmpC mutants were also tested. Results: WCK 4234, which lacked direct antibacterial activity, strongly potentiated imipenem and meropenem against Enterobacteriaceae with OXA-48/OXA-181 or KPC enzymes, or with combinations of impermeability and AmpC or ESBL activity, with MICs reduced to ≤2 mg/L in almost all cases. Carbapenems likewise were potentiated against P. aeruginosa ( n = 2) with OXA-181 enzyme, with MICs reduced from 64-128 to 2-8 mg/L and against A. baumannii with OXA carbapenemases, particularly OXA-23 or hyperproduced OXA-51, with MICs reduced to ≤2 mg/L for 9/10 acinetobacters with OXA-23 enzyme. Carbapenems were not potentiated against Enterobacteriaceae or non-fermenters with metallo-ß-lactamases. Conclusions: WCK 4234 distinctively overcame resistance mediated by OXA-type carbapenemases, including those of A. baumannii . It behaved similarly to other DBOs against strains with KPC carbapenemases or combinations of impermeability and ESBL or AmpC activity.

Simultaneous analysis method for GHB, ketamine, norketamine, phenobarbital, thiopental, zolpidem, zopiclone and phenytoin in urine, using C18 poroshell column.

Date-rape drugs have the potential to be used in drug-facilitated sexual assault, organ theft and property theft. Since they are colorless, tasteless and odorless, victims can drink without noticing, when added to the beverages. These drugs must be detected in time, before they are cleared up from the biofluids. A simultaneous extraction and determination method in urine for GHB, ketamine, norketamine, phenobarbital, thiopental, zolpidem, zopiclone and phenytoin (an anticonvulsant and antiepileptic drug) with LC-MS/MS was developed for the first time with analytically acceptable recoveries and validated. A 4 steps liquid-liquid extraction was applied, using only 1.000mL urine. A new age commercial C18 poroshell column with high column efficiency was used for LC-MS/MS analysis with a fast isocratic elution as 5.5min. A new MS transition were introduced for barbital. 222.7>179.8 with the effect of acetonitrile. Recoveries (%) were between 80.98-99.27 for all analytes, except for GHB which was 71.46. LOD and LOQ values were found in the ranges of 0.59-49.50 and 9.20-80.80ngmL(-1) for all the analytes (except for GHB:3.44 and 6.00µgmL(-1)). HorRat values calculated (between 0.25-1.21), revealed that the inter-day and interanalist precisions (RSD%≤14.54%) acceptable. The simultaneous extraction and determination of these 8 analytes in urine is challenging because of the difficulty arising from the different chemical properties of some. Since the procedure can extract drugs from a wide range of polarity and pKa, it increases the window of detection. Group representatives from barbiturates, z-drugs, ketamine, phenytoin and polar acidic drugs (GHB) have been successfully analyzed in this study with low detection limits. The method is important from the point of determining the combined or single use of these drugs in crimes and finding out the reasons of deaths related to these drugs.

Coatings of molecularly imprinted polymers based on polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane for open tubular capillary electrochromatography.

Polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) was successfully applied, for the first time, to prepare imprinted monolithic coating for capillary electrochromatography. The imprinted monolithic coating was synthesized with a mixture of PSS-(1-Propylmethacrylate)-heptaisobutyl substituted (MA 0702), S-amlodipine (template), methacrylic acid (functional monomer), and 2-methacrylamidopropyl methacrylate (crosslinker), in a porogenic mixture of toluene-isooctane. The influence of synthesis parameters on the imprinting effect and separation performance, including the amount of MA 0702, the ratio of template to monomer, and the ratio of monomer to crosslinker, was investigated. The greatest resolution for enantiomers separation on the imprinted monolithic column prepared with MA 0702 was up to 22.3, about 2 times higher than that prepared in absence of the POSS. Column efficiency on the POSS-based MIP coatings was beyond 30,000 plate m(-1). The comparisons between MIP coating synthesized with the POSS and without the POSS were made in terms of selectivity, column efficiency, and resolution. POSS-based MIP capillaries with naproxen or zopiclone was also prepared and separation of enantiomers can be achieved.

Preparation of a ß-Cyclodextrin-Based Open-Tubular Capillary Electrochromatography Column and Application for Enantioseparations of Ten Basic Drugs.

An open-tubular capillary electrochromatography column was prepared by chemically immobilized ß-cyclodextrin modified gold nanoparticles onto new surface with the prederivatization of (3-mercaptopropyl)-trimethoxysilane. The synthesized nanoparticles and the prepared column were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, infrared spectroscopy and ultraviolet visible spectroscopy. When the column was employed as the chiral stationary phase, no enantioselectivity was observed for ten model basic drugs. So ß-cyclodextrin was added to the background electrolyte as chiral additive to expect a possible synergistic effect occurring and resulting in a better separation. Fortunately, significant improvement in enantioselectivity was obtained for ten pairs of drug enantiomers. Then, the effects of ß-cyclodextrin concentration and background electrolyte pH on the chiral separation were investigated. With the developed separation mode, all the enantiomers (except for venlafaxine) were baseline separated in resolutions of 4.49, 1.68, 1.88, 1.57, 2.52, 2.33, 3.24, 1.63 and 3.90 for zopiclone, chlorphenamine maleate, brompheniramine maleate, dioxopromethazine hydrochloride, carvedilol, homatropine hydrobromide, homatropine methylbromide, venlafaxine, sibutramine hydrochloride and terbutaline sulfate, respectively. Further, the possible separation mechanism involved was discussed.

HPTLC Method for Quantitative Determination of Zopiclone and Its Impurity.

This study was designed to establish, optimize and validate a sensitive, selective and accurate high-performance thin layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method for determination of zopiclone (ZPC) and its main impurity, 2-amino-5-chloropyridine, one of its degradation products, in raw material and pharmaceutical formulation. The proposed method was applied for analysis of ZPC and its impurity over the concentration range of 0.3-1.4 and 0.05-0.8 µg/band with accuracy of mean percentage recovery 99.92% ± 1.521 and 99.28% ± 2.296, respectively. The method is based on the separation of two components followed by densitometric measurement of the separated peaks at 305 nm. The separation was carried out on silica gel HPTLC F254 plates, using chloroform-methanol-glacial acetic acid (9:1:0.1, by volume) as a developing system. The suggested method was validated according to International Conference on Harmonization guidelines and can be applied for routine analysis in quality control laboratories. The results obtained by the proposed method were statistically compared with the reported method revealing high accuracy and good precision.

N-Boc deprotection and isolation method for water-soluble zwitterionic compounds.

A highly efficient TMSI-mediated deprotection and direct isolation method to obtain zwitterionic compounds from the corresponding N-Boc derivatives has been developed. This method has been demonstrated in the final deprotection/isolation of the ß-lactamase inhibitor MK-7655 as a part of its manufacturing process. Further application of this process toward other zwitterionic compounds, such as dipeptides and tripeptides, has been successfully developed. Furthermore, a catalytic version of this transformation has been demonstrated in the presence of BSA or BSTFA.

Development of an SPE method for the determination of zaleplon and zopiclone in hemolyzed blood using fast GC with negative-ion chemical ionization MS.

An SPE procedure for the determination of zaleplon and zopiclone in low-volume human hemolyzed blood using fast GC with negative-ion chemical ionization MS has been developed and validated. Both analytes were well retained on Oasis MCX and HLB columns, and sufficient extraction efficiency was achieved at pH 9.0. For further study a hydrophilic-lipophilic sorbent Oasis HLB was selected due to the polarity of sorbent surface and its large surface area in order to achieve efficient extraction of both analytes in a single step. Special attention has been paid to choosing washing and eluting solvents, resulting in a particularly/extremely clean and moisture-free extract. The mean extraction efficiency was higher than 90.1% for zaleplon and 82.9% for zopiclone. The precision for zaleplon and zopiclone was between 3.04-10.58% and 4.08-9.52%, respectively. Whereas the accuracy was in the range from -5.73 to 6.00%, and from -7.00 to 6.32% for zaleplon and zopiclone, respectively. The results show that the developed method is accurate, selective, precise, and very fast with excellent recovery and low LOD and LOQ.

Stereoisomeric isolation and stereoselective fate of insecticide paichongding in flooded paddy soils.

Chiral insecticide paichongding (IPP) is one of the prospective substitutes for imidacloprid used in China due to its higher activity against imidacloprid-resistant insects. However, little is known about the fate of IPP in soils, including especially the different behaviors among its stereoisomers. In this study, four stereoisomers of IPP were separated and applied in flooded soils. Kinetics of mineralization, extractable residues, and bound residues showed diastereoselectivity in IPP degradation, with enantiomers (5S,7R)-IPP (IPP-SR) and (5R,7S)-IPP (IPP-RS) being more readily mineralized and preferentially bound to soils than enantiomers (5R,7R)-IPP (IPP-RR) and (5S,7S)-IPP (IPP-SS). The overall mineralization was rather limited and did not exceed 4% of the spiked rate. Concurrent to the decreases of extractable residues, the fraction of bound residues increased with time and reached about 34% of the applied radioactivity for (14)C-IPP-SR and (14)C-IPP-RS as compared to about 23% for (14)C-IPP-RR or (14)C-IPP-SS. Soil properties such as organic matter content and pH likely contributed to the variability. Relatively rapid formation of bound residue suggests that IPP may be quickly detoxified in flooded paddy soil, decreasing the potential for off-site transport such as leaching or runoff, especially for enantiomers IPP-SR and IPP-RS.

Synthesis, enantiomer separation, and absolute configuration of 2,6-oxygenated 9-azabicyclo[3.3.1]nonanes.

The synthesis of the enantiomerically pure N-Boc 9-azabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane-2,6-dione (4b), a potentially useful chiral building block, from N-Bn and N-Boc 9-azabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane-2,6-diols 2a and 2b was accomplished. The enantiomer resolution of diols 2a and 2b was achieved by crystallization of their diastereomeric esters or by kinetic resolution of the racemic diol 2a using lipase from Candida rugosa (CRL). Both enantiomers of N-Boc protected diol 2b were converted into the corresponding enantiomerically pure diones 4b, the absolute configuration of which was determined by comparison of the experimental and simulated circular dichroism (CD) spectra, obtained by ab initio time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) calculations. The (-)-(1R,5R)/(+)-(1S,5S) absolute configuration of 4b inferred from the TDDFT calculations was confirmed via analysis of the CD spectrum of endo,endo-dibenzoate (+)-7 derived from diol (+)-2b and application of the benzoate exciton chirality method. The assigned absolute configuration was further supported by the results of kinetic resolution of diol 2a using Candida rugosa lipase, which exhibited kinetic preference toward the (1R,2R,5R,6R)-enantiomer in agreement with the Kazlauskas' rule.

Lycojaponicumins A-C, three alkaloids with an unprecedented skeleton from Lycopodium japonicum.

Lycojaponicumins A-C (1-3), three trace alkaloids isolated from Lycopodium japonicum, represent a unique heterocyclic skeleton formed by the new linkage C4-C9. Notably, lycojaponicumins A and B (1 and 2) are the first examples of natural products possessing a 5/5/5/5/6 pentacyclic ring system with a 1-aza-7-oxabicyclo[2.2.1]heptane moiety. These structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods and X-ray diffraction analysis. A plausible biogenetic pathway was proposed.

Eucophylline, a Tetracyclic Vinylquinoline Alkaloid from Leuconotis eugenifolius.

Eucophylline (1), a new tetracyclic vinylquinoline alkaloid, was isolated from the bark of Leuconotis eugenifolius together with leucophyllidine (2). The structure and absolute configuration of 1 were elucidated on the basis of 2D NMR correlations and simulated CD analysis. Leucophyllidine (2) showed iNOS inhibitory activity and decreased the iNOS protein expression dose-dependently.

A validated method for simultaneous screening and quantification of twenty-three benzodiazepines and metabolites plus zopiclone and zaleplone in whole blood by liquid-liquid extraction and ultra-performance liquid chromatography- tandem mass spectrometry.

An ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS-MS) method for detection of 23 benzodiazepines and related compounds in whole blood was developed and validated. The method is used for screening and quantitation of benzodiazepines in whole blood received from autopsy cases and living persons. The detected compounds were alprazolam, bromazepam, brotizolam, chlordiazepoxide, demoxepam, clobazam, clonazepam, 7-aminoclonazepam, diazepam, nordiazepam, estazolam, flunitrazepam, 7-aminoflunitrazepam, lorazepam, lormetazepam, midazolam, nitrazepam, 7-aminonitrazepam, oxazepam, temazepam, triazolam, zaleplon, and zopiclone. Whole blood from drug-free volunteers was used for all experiments. Blood samples (0.200 g) were extracted with ethyl acetate at pH 9. Target drugs were quantified using a Waters ACQUITY UPLC system coupled to a Waters Quattro Premier XE triple quadrupole in positive electrospray ionization, multiple reaction monitoring mode. The use of deuterated internal standards for most compounds verified that the accuracy of the method was not influenced by matrix effects. Extraction recoveries were 73-108% for all analytes. Lower limits of quantification ranged from 0.002 to 0.005 mg/kg. Long-term imprecision (CV%) ranged from 6.0 to 18.7%. We present a fully validated UPLC-MS-MS method for 23 benzodiazepines in whole blood with a run-time of only 5 min and using only 0.200 g of whole blood.

The cyclic organosulfur compound zwiebelane A from onion (Allium cepa) functions as an enhancer of polymyxin B in fungal vacuole disruption.

Zwiebelane A (CIS-2,3-dimethyl-5,6-dithiabicyclo[2.1.1]hexane 5-oxide), a natural product of onion bulbs (Allium cepa L.), is found to enhance the potential fungicidal activity of polymyxin B (PMB). As is the case with allicin, an allyl sulfur compound from garlic, zwiebelane A amplifies the disruptive effect of PMB on the vacuole of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which has been found to represent a target for antifungal agents.

Use of cyclodextrin-modified gold nanoparticles for enantioseparations of drugs and amino acids based on pseudostationary phase-capillary electrochromatography.

The application of chemical-modified gold nanoparticles (GNPs) as chiral selector for the enantioseparation based on pseudostationary phase-CEC (PSP-CEC) is presented. GNPs modified by thiolated beta-CD were characterized by NMR and FT-IR. The nanoparticle size was determined to be of 9.5 nm (+2.5 nm) by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and UV spectra. Four pairs of dinitrophenyl-labeled amino acid enantiomers (DL-Val, Leu, Glu and Asp) and three pairs of drug enantiomers (RS-chlorpheniramine, zopiclone and carvedilol) were analyzed by using modified GNPs as the chiral selector in PSP-CEC. Good theoretical plate number (up to 2.4x10(5) per meter) and separation resolution (up to 4.7) were obtained even with low concentration of modified GNPs (0.8-1.4 mg/mL). The corresponding concentration of beta-CD in the buffer was only 0.30-0.53 mM, which was much lower than the optimum concentration of 15 mM if pure beta-CD was used as chiral selector. Our results showed that thiolated beta-CD modified GNPs have more sufficient interaction with the analytes, resulting in significant enhancement of enantioseparation. The study shed light on potential usage of chemical modified GNPs as chiral selector for enantioseparation based on PSP-CEC.

Enantiomeric separation of S-zopiclone and its R-enantiomer in bulk drug samples by validated chiral RP-HPLC.

A simple and selective isocratic chiral RP-HPLC method was developed for the enantiomeric purity determination of S-zopiclone and the quantitative determination of R-zopiclone in bulk drug samples. Enantiomeric separation was achieved using Chiralcel OD-RH 150 x 4.6 mm, 5 microm particle size column at 25 degrees C using a mobile phase of 10 mM ammonium acetate and acetonitrile in ratio of 60:40 (v/v) as mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.0 mL x min(-1) and UV detection at 306 nm. The method resolves the R-zopiclone and S-zopiclone with resolution (Rs) greater than 1.6. The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantitation (LOQ) of the R-enantiomer were 0.12 microg x mL(-1) and 0.40 microg x mL(-1) respectively, for 10 microL injection volume. The percentage RSD of the peak area of six replicate injections of R-zopiclone at LOQ concentration was 4.6. The percentage recoveries of R-enantiomer from S-zopiclone were ranged from 97.3 to 99.8. Developed method was found to be selective in presence potential impurities. The developed chiral RP-HPLC method was validated with respect to precision, linearity, accuracy, robustness and ruggedness. The test solution and mobile phase was found to be stable up to 24 h after preparation.

Aplaminal: a novel cytotoxic aminal isolated from the sea hare Aplysia kurodai.

Aplaminal (1), a novel triazabicyclo[3.2.1]octane framework metabolite, has been isolated from the sea hare Aplysia kurodai. The structure was determined by analysis of NMR data and confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Aplaminal (1) exhibits cytotoxicity against Hela S3 cells.