Combination of a Chaperone Synthesis Inducer and an Inhibitor of GAPDH Aggregation for Rehabilitation after Traumatic Brain Injury: A Pilot Study.

The recovery period after traumatic brain injury (TBI) is often complicated by secondary damage that may last for days or even months after trauma. Two proteins, Hsp70 and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), were recently described as modulating post-traumatic processes, and in this study, we test them as targets for combination therapy using an inhibitor of GAPDH aggregation (derivative of hydrocortisone RX624) and an inducer of Hsp70 synthesis (the pyrrolylazine derivative PQ-29). The protective effect of the combination on C6 rat glioblastoma cells treated with the cerebrospinal fluid of traumatized animals resulted in an increase in the cell index and in a reduced level of apoptosis. Using a rat weight drop model of TBI, we found that the combined use of both drugs prevented memory impairment and motor deficits, as well as a reduction of neurons and accumulation of GAPDH aggregates in brain tissue. In conclusion, we developed and tested a new approach to the treatment of TBI based on influencing distinct molecular mechanisms in brain cells.

Enantiomerically Enriched 1,2-P,N-Bidentate Ferrocenyl Ligands for 1,3-Dipolar Cycloaddition and Transfer Hydrogenation Reactions.

Novel complexes of 1,2-P,N-bidentate ferrocenyl ligands with AgOAc or with [RuCl2(PPh3)3] as catalysts have been studied in asymmetric synthesis. The catalytic activity of these systems have been studied in [3+2]-cycloaddition of azomethine ylides with olefins and the asymmetric transfer hydrogenation of ketones.

Hypervalent Iodine(III) in Direct Oxidative Amination of Arenes with Heteroaromatic Amines.

A novel, mild, and practical method of amination of simple nonfunctionalized arenes under metal free conditions has been developed. The approach allows coupling of electron-rich arenes with amino derivatives of electron-deficient heterocycles providing rapid access to scaffolds of bioactive compounds and is based on the application of the hypervalent iodine(III) reagent as an oxidant. Regioselective functionalization of C-H bonds of arenes by the formation of C-N bonds under organocatalytic conditions was demonstrated.

Two approaches in the synthesis of planar chiral azinylferrocenes.

Two synthetic routes to the chiral azinylferrocenes (CAFs) 5 and 15, key intermediates for the synthesis of new enantiomerically enriched P,N-ligands, have been compared. The first approach is based on the palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reaction of halogenated azines with organozinc derivatives of ferrocenes (the Negishi reaction). The second approach exploits a new synthetic methodology, which provides a shorter pathway, through the direct C-H functionalization of aromatics by the C-C coupling of halogen-free (hetero)arenes with lithium ferrocenes bearing stereogenic C and S atoms. The palladium complexes of P,N-ligands have been used as catalysts for the Tsuji-Trost reaction, which proceeds with high enantioselectivity to give allylic substitution products in good yields.