Discovery of Novel 5,6-Dihydro-4H-pyrido[2,3,4-de]quinazoline Irreversible Inhibitors Targeting Both Wild-Type and A775_G776insYVMA Mutated HER2 Kinases.

HER2 mutations were seen in 4% of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. Most of these mutations (90%) occur as an insertion mutation within the exon 20 frame, leading to the downstream activation of the PI3K-AKT and RAS/MAPK pathways. However, no targeted therapies have yet been approved worldwide. Here a novel series of highly potent HER2 inhibitors with a pyrido[2,3,4-de]quinazoline core were designed and developed. The derivatives with the pyrido[2,3,4-de]quinazoline core displayed superior efficacy of antiproliferation in BaF3 cells harboring HER2insYVMA mutation compared with afatinib and neratinib. Rat studies showed that 8a and 9a with the newly developed core have good pharmacokinetic properties with an oral bioavailability of 41.7 and 42.0%, respectively. Oral administration of 4a and 10e (30 mg/kg, QD) displayed significant antitumor efficacy in an in vivo xenograft model. We proposed promising strategies for the development of HER2insYVMA mutant inhibitors in this study.

Predictive analysis of catecholamines and electrolytes for recurrence of orthostatic intolerance in children.

Background: Orthostatic intolerance (OI) is usually mediated by the autonomic nerve and most often happens in the upright position. However, it can also occur in other positions and can be relieved by lying down while likely to have another attack after relief. In the current study, we aim to evaluate the predictive effect of catecholamines and electrolytes on the recurrence of OI in children. Materials and methods: Children who were diagnosed with vasovagal syncope (VVS), postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS), and VVS combined with POTS were enrolled in this retrospective study and were followed up after 1-year physical treatment. Catecholamines in urine collected within 24 h, renin, angiotensin II, aldosterone in plasma, and electrolytes in both blood and urine collected in the morning were tested. A multivariate analysis and a receiver operating characteristic curve were used to validate the prediction effect. Results: In the VVS cohort, the 24 h urine adrenaline (AD) and norepinephrine (NE) levels of the non-recurrence group were lower than the 24 h urine AD and NE levels of the recurrence group, with a significant difference of P < 0.05. A different content can also be witnessed in the POTS cohort that the urine of the non-recurrence group contained lower sodium and chlorine. As for the VVS + POTS cohort, the non-recurrence group has lower AD and NE levels and higher potassium and phosphorus levels in urine, the difference of which proved prominent as well. Conclusion: The study provides further evidence that AD, NE, and electrolytes in urine are promising factors that are closely related to the recurrence of OI in children. The integrated evaluation system merging AD and NE may have better predictive ability.

Ru-FeNi Alloy Heterojunctions on Lignin-derived Carbon as Bifunctional Electrocatalysts for Efficient Overall Water Splitting.

Rational design of efficient, stable, and inexpensive bifunctional electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reactions (OER) and hydrogen evolution reactions (HER) is a key challenge to realize green hydrogen production via electrolytic water splitting. Herein, Ru nanoparticles and FeNi alloy heterojunction catalyst (Ru-FeNi@NLC) encapsulated via lignin-derived carbon was prepared by self-assembly precipitation and in situ pyrolysis. The designed catalyst displays excellent performance at 10 mA cm-2 with low overpotentials of 36 mV for HER and 198 mV for OER, and only needs 1.48 V for overall water splitting. Results and DFT calculations show the unique N-doped lignin-derived carbon layer and Ru-FeNi heterojunction contribute to optimized electronic structure for enhancing electron transfer, balanced free energy of reactants and intermediates in the sorption/desorption process, and significantly reduced reaction energy barrier for the HER and OER rate-determining steps, thus improved reaction kinetics. This work provides a new in situ pyrolysis doping strategy based on renewable biomass for the construction of highly active, stable and cost-effective catalysts.

Predictive value of EGSYS score in the differential diagnosis of cardiac syncope and neurally mediated syncope in children.

Background and objective: Syncope is a common emergency with diverse etiologies in children. Among these, cardiac syncope (CS) is associated with high mortality and is usually difficult to diagnose. However, there is still no validated clinical prediction model to distinguish CS from other forms of pediatric syncope. The Evaluation of Guidelines in Syncope Study (EGSYS) score was designed to identify CS in adults and has been validated in several studies. In this study, we aimed to assess the ability of the EGSYS score in predicting CS in children. Methods: In this retrospective study, we calculated and analyzed the EGSYS scores of 332 children hospitalized for syncope between January 2009 and December 2021. Among them, 281 were diagnosed with neurally mediated syncope (NMS) through the head-up tilt test, and 51 were diagnosed with CS using electrocardiography (ECG), echocardiography (ECHO), coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA), myocardial enzymes and genetic screening. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and Hosmer-Lemeshow test were used to evaluate the predictive value of the EGSYS score system. Results: The median scores of 51 children with CS and 281 children with NMS were 4 [interquartile range (IQR): 3-5] and -1 (IQR: -2-1), respectively. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.922 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.892-0.952; P < 0.001], indicating that the EGSYS score system has good discrimination. The best cutoff point was ≥3, with a sensitivity and specificity of 84.3% and 87.9%, respectively. The Hosmer-Lemeshow test demonstrated satisfactory calibration (χ²=1.468, P > 0.05) of the score, indicating a good fit of the model. Conclusion: The EGSYS score appeared to be sensitive for differentiating CS from NMS in children. It might be used as an additional diagnostic tool to aid pediatricians in accurately identifying children with CS in the clinical practice.

Lignosulfonate-assisted in situ synthesis of Co9S8-Ni3S2 heterojunctions encapsulated by S/N co-doped biochar for efficient water oxidation.

The development of highly active and stable earth-rich electrocatalysts remains a major challenge to release the reliance on noble metal catalysts in sustainable (electro)chemical processes. In this work, metal sulfides encapsulated with S/N co-doped carbon were synthesized with a one-step pyrolysis strategy, where S was introduced during the self-assembly process of sodium lignosulfonate. Due to the precise coordination of Ni and Co ions with lignosulfonate, an intense-interacted Co9S8-Ni3S2 heterojunction was formed inside the carbon shell, causing the redistribution of electrons. An overpotential as low as 200 mV was obtained over Co9S8-Ni3S2@SNC to reach a current density of 10 mA cm-2. Only a slight increase of 14.4 mV was observed in a 50 h chronoamperometric stability test. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations showed that Co9S8-Ni3S2 heterojunctions encapsulated with S/N co-doped carbon can optimize the electronic structure, lower the reaction energy barrier, and improve the OER reaction activity. This work provides a novel strategy for constructing highly efficient and sustainable metal sulfide heterojunction catalysts with the assistance of lignosulfonate biomass.

Lignin-derived carbon-supported MoC-FeNi heterostructure as efficient electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction.

Developing noble-metal-free electrocatalysts for efficient oxygen evolution reactions (OER) is urgently desired to obtain green hydrogen by water electrolysis. Coupling FeNi catalysts with other transition metals is an effective strategy to improve the OER performance, but the electronic structure regulation of the catalytic center is challenging. Herein, heterostructures catalyst composed of MoC and FeNi alloy embedded in N-doped biochar (denoted as MoC-FeNi@NLC) was in situ synthesized by pyrolysis of lignin-metals coordination complex. MoC-FeNi@NLC displayed an overpotential of 198 mV and a long steady running time of 200 h at 10 mA·cm-2 in alkaline media. Furthermore, MoC-FeNi@NLC has demonstrated excellent Faradaic efficiency (FE) of over 90 %. A voltage of 1.50 V was required based on the MoC-FeNi@NLC and Pt/C coupling system, which was superior to that of commercial noble metal catalysts (Pt/C || Ir/C, 1.57 V). The density functional theory demonstrated that FeNi alloy balanced the adsorption energy of OER intermediates and regulated the orbital overlap of Mo above Fermi level. While the lignin-derived carbon layer prevented the deactivation and dissolution of catalytic center. The construction strategy of transition metal alloys and carbides heterojunction by the assistance of sustainable lignin derivatives and its structure-activity relationship toward OER electrocatalytic process provides a promising and cost-efficient pathway for the design of high-performance and stable OER catalysts.

Molybdenum-tungsten Oxide Nanowires Rich in Oxygen Vacancies as An Advanced Electrocatalyst for Hydrogen Evolution.

Electrolysis of water is a promising way to produce hydrogen fuel in large scale. The commercialization of this technology requires highly efficient non-noble metal electrocatalysts to decease the energy input for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). In this work, a novel nanowire structured molybdenum-tungsten bimetallic oxide (CTAB-D-W4 MoO3 ) is synthesized by a simple hydrothermal method followed with post annealing treatment. The obtained metal oxides feature with enhanced conductivity, rich oxygen vacancies and customized electronic structure. As such, the composite electrocatalyst exhibits excellent electrocatalytic performance for HER in an acidic environment, achieving a large current density of 100 mA cm-2 at overpotential of only 286 mV and a small Tafel slope of 71.2 mV dec-1 . The excellent electrocatalytic HER performance of CTAB-D-W4 MoO3 is attributed to the unique nanowire structure, rich catalytic active sites and promoted electron transfer rate.

Predicting the metabolic characteristics of neorudin, a novel anticoagulant fusion protein, in patients with deep vein thrombosis.

INTRODUCTION: Recombinant neorudin (EPR-hirudin, EH) is an inactive prodrug that is converted to its active metabolite, hirudin variant 2-Lys47 (HV2), at the thrombus site. We aimed to investigate the mechanism underlying site-selective bioconversion of EH to HV2 at the thrombus target site and metabolic transformation of EH in patients with deep vein thrombosis (DVT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Metabolites in healthy volunteer plasma and urine after intravenous administration of EH were determined to elucidate how EH was metabolised after releasing HV2 at the target site in patients with DVT. After intravenous administration of EH in rats with venous thrombosis, the concentrations of EH in the blood and thrombus and the antithrombotic activity of EH were measured to predict whether EH could release HV2 at the thrombus site to exert anticoagulant effect in patients with DVT. RESULTS: In healthy volunteers, EH and HV2 were predominantly excreted in the urine. Nine EH metabolites and ten HV2 metabolites truncated at the C-terminal were identified as N-terminal fragments, and these had the same cleavage sites. In rats with venous thrombosis, the area under the curve ratio of HV2 between the thrombus and blood was 29.5. The weight of wet thrombus was decreased with the production of HV2 by the cleavage of EH. The prothrombin time (PT) and prothrombin time (TT) changed proportionally to the concentration of EH and HV2 in the blood. CONCLUSION: EH selectively accumulates and releases HV2 in the thrombus to exert antithrombotic effects, thus lowering the bleeding risk. Moreover, after conversion, EH may follow the same metabolic profile as that of HV2 in patients with DVT.

Evaluating prodrug characteristics of a novel anticoagulant fusion protein neorudin, a prodrug targeting release of hirudin variant 2-Lys47 at the thrombosis site, by means of in vitro pharmacokinetics.

Recombinant neorudin (EPR-hirudin, EH), a low-bleeding anticoagulant fusion protein, is an inactive prodrug designed to be converted to the active metabolite, hirudin variant 2-Lys47 (HV2), locally at the thrombus site by FXa and/or FXIa, following activation of the coagulation system. Our aim was to evaluate the prodrug characteristics of EH by comparing the biotransformation of EH and HV2 in biological matrices, including rat blood, liver, and kidney homogenates, demonstrating the cleavage of EH to HV2 by FXa and FXIa, and comparing the conversion of EH to HV2 between fresh whole blood and whole-blood clot homogenate, using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). Both EH and HV2 were stable in blood and unstable in the liver and kidney homogenates. Eight EH metabolites and eight HV2 metabolites identified as N-terminal fragments were found in the liver and kidney. C-terminal proteolysis is therefore the major metabolic pathway, with serine/cysteine carboxypeptidases and metallocarboxypeptidases being responsible for the degradation of EH and HV2 in the liver and kidney, respectively. EH was cleaved to release HV2 by FXIa. Higher levels of HV2 were produced from EH in the whole-blood clot homogenate, in which the coagulation system was activated compared with those in fresh whole blood. In conclusion, the metabolism of EH and HV2 shares the same cleavage pattern, and EH is transformed into HV2 when the coagulation system is activated, where FXIa is a specific enzyme. Our in vitro study revealed the anticipated prodrug characteristics of EH newly designed as an inactive prodrug of hirudin.

An improved LC-MS/MS method for simultaneous determination of 1,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid and its active metabolites in human plasma and its application to a pharmacokinetic study in patients.

In this study, a sensitive, selective and reproducible liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for the simultaneous determination of 1,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid (1,5-DCQA) and its active metabolites, 1-caffeoyl-5-feruoylquinic acid and 1,5-O-diferuoylquinic acid, in human plasma, using puerarin as internal standard, was developed and validated. Analytes were extracted from plasma samples by liquid-liquid extraction with ethyl acetate, separated on a C(18) reversed-phase column with water containing 5 mM ammonium acetate and acetonitrile as the mobile phase and detected by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry in negative selected reaction monitoring mode. The accuracy and precision of the method were acceptable and linearity was good over the range 1-200 ng/mL for each analyte. In addition, the selectivity, extraction recovery and matrix effect were satisfactory too. The validated LC-MS/MS method was successfully applied to phase II clinical pharmacokinetic study of 1,5-DCQA in patients.

[Rapid pharmacokinetics screening of drug candidates in vitro and in vivo].

The paper is to report the pharmacokinetic character of a series of chemical compounds in vitro and in vivo. Metabolism stability of a series of chemical compounds was screened by using rat liver microsomes. The samples of different chemical compounds were combined and then simultaneously detected by LC-MS/MS. Compounds y13, y12 and y11 were screened out by microstability assay in vitro. The pharmacokinetics of compounds y11, y12 and y13 was evaluated by using SD rat. The plasma samples were pooled at the same time. The plasma concentrations were determined by LC-MS/MS. The pharmacokinetic character of two compounds y13, y11 was good by screening in vivo, so they were developed for further research. High-throughput screening of drug candidates in vitro and in vivo was effective, to provide information for the chemical structure information and lower the drug development risk.