A novel synthesis, X-ray analysis and computational studies of (Z)-ethyl 2-((Z)-5-((dimethylamino)methylene)- 4-oxo-3-phenylthiazolidin-2-ylidene)acetate as a potential anticancer agent.

BACKGROUND: 4-Thiazolidinone ring is reported to have almost all types of biological activities. Also, it present in many marketed drugs. RESULTS: Ethyl acetoacetate reacted with phenyl isothiocyanate and ethyl chloroacetate in presence of K2CO3 and DMF to afford the thiazolidinone derivative 5. Thiazolidinone 5 reacted with dimethylformamide-dimethylacetal to afford (Z)-ethyl 2-((Z)-5-((dimethylamino) methylene)-4-oxo-3-phenylthiazolidin-2-ylidene)acetate (6). The structure of thiazolidinone 6 was elucidated from its spectral analysis and X-ray crystallography and was optimized using B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) method. The geometric parameters and NMR spectra were discussed both experimentally and theoretically. Also, the natural charges at the different atomic sites were predicted. The synthesized compounds had moderate cytotoxic activity. CONCLUSIONS: An unexpected synthesis of (Z)-ethyl 2-((Z)-5-((dimethylamino)methylene)-4-oxo-3-phenylthiazolidin-2-ylidene)acetate via deacetylation mechanism. The structure was established using X-ray and spectral analysis. The geometric parameters, and NMR spectra were discussed. The synthesized compounds showed moderate anticancer activity.

Honokiol: An anticancer lignan.

BACKGROUND: Honokiol ((3',5-di-(2-propenyl)-1,1'-biphenyl-2,2'-diol), a lignan, is a promising antitumor compound, having exerted activity against a number of human cancer cell lines. Honokiol has inhibitory role on the proliferation, invasion and survival of cancer cells in in vitro as well as in vivo studies. It interferes with signaling pathways components in order to elicit the anticancer effect. SCOPE AND APPROACH: In present review, the published data on the efficacy of honokiol against various cancer cell lines and tumor-bearing animal models has been presented and discussed. KEY FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS: Honokiol lowers the expression of pluripotency-factors, the formation of mammosphere, P-glycoprotein expression, receptor CXCR4 level, c-FLIP, steroid receptor coactivator-3 (SRC-3), Twist1, matrix metalloproteinases, class I histone deacetylases, H3K27 methyltransferase among numerous other anticancer functions. It increases bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP7), Bax protein, among others. It does so by interfering with the major checkpoints such as nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), mammalian target of rapamycin (m-TOR), epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), Sonic hedgehog (SHH). It promotes the efficacy of several anticancer drugs and radiation tolerance. The derivatization of honokiol results in compounds with interesting attributes in terms of cancer control. This review will shed light on the scopes and hurdles in the relevance of the bioactive lignan honokiol in cancer management.

Bioactive compounds and health benefits of edible Rumex species-A review.

Medicinal and food plants as well as their bioactive fractions have been used by diverse human cultures since ancient times. These plants provide multiple health benefits because of the presence of a plethora of phytochemicals including phenylpropanoids, isoprenoids, alkaloids, sulphated compounds, peptides and polysaccharides that are responsible for various biological activities such as anticancer, antioxidant, antifungal, antibacterial, anti-dysenteric, anti-inflammatory, antiulcer, anti-hypertensive and anticoagulant properties. The genus Rumex includes edible and medicinal herbs belonging to buckwheat (Polygonaceae) family, consisting of about 200 species rich in phenylpropanoids and anthraquinones. Some Rumex species have exhibited health-promoting effects and have been used as traditional foods and herbal remedies, though a limited information has been documented on their specific biological properties. Therefore, this survey aimed at reviewing the Rumex species with documented biological activity, focusing on preclinical evidences on their efficacy and safety.

Stereoselective synthesis, X-ray analysis, computational studies and biological evaluation of new thiazole derivatives as potential anticancer agents.

BACKGROUND: The synthesis of new thiazole derivatives is very important because of their diverse biological activities. Also , many drugs containing thiazole ring in their skeletons are available in the market such as Abafungin, Acotiamide, Alagebrium, Amiphenazole, Brecanavir, Carumonam, Cefepime, and Cefmatilen. RESULTS: Ethyl cyanoacetate reacted with phenylisothiocyanate, chloroacetone, in two different basic mediums to afford the thiazole derivative 6, which reacted with dimethylformamide- dimethyl acetal in the presence of DMF to afford the unexpected thiazole derivative 11. The structures of the thiazoles 6 and 11 were optimized using B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) method. The experimentally and theoretically geometric parameters agreed very well. Also, the natural charges at the different atomic sites were predicted. HOMO and LUMO demands were discussed. The anticancer activity of the prepared compounds was evaluated and showed moderate activity. CONCLUSIONS: Synthesis of novel thiazole derivatives was done. The structure was established using X-ray and spectral analysis. Optimized molecular structures at the B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) level were investigated. Thiazole derivative 11 has more electropositive S-atom than thiazole 6. The HOMO-LUMO energy gap is lower in the former compared to the latter. The synthesized compounds showed moderate anticancer activity.

Synthesis, characterization, X-ray structure, computational studies, and bioassay of novel compounds combining thiophene and benzimidazole or 1,2,4-triazole moieties.

BACKGROUND: Due to their interesting and versatile biological activity, thiophene-containing compounds have attracted the attention of both chemists and medicinal chemists. Some of these compounds have anticancer, antibacterial, antiviral, and antioxidant activity. In addition, the thiophene nucleus has been used in the synthesis of a variety of heterocyclic compounds. RESULTS: In the present work, two novel thiophene-containing compounds, 4-phenyl-2-phenylamino-5-(1H-1,3-a,8-triaza-cyclopenta[α]inden-2-yl)-thiophene-3-carboxylic acid ethyl ester (3) and 5-(1H-Imidazo[1,2-b] [1,2,4] triazol-5-yl)-4-phenyl-2-phenylamino-thiophene-3-carboxylic acid ethyl ester (4), have been synthesized by reaction of 5-(2-bromo-acetyl)-4-phenyl-2-phenylaminothiophene-3-carboxylic acid ethyl ester (2) with 2-aminobenzimidazole and 3-amino-1H-1,2,4-triazole in the presence of triethylamine, respectively. Compound 2, on the other hand, was prepared by bromination of 5-acetyl-4-phenyl-2-phenylaminothiophene-3-carboxylic acid ester (1). Structures of the newly prepared compounds were confirmed by different spectroscopic methods such as 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, and mass spectrometry, as well as by elemental analysis. Furthermore, bromination of compound 1 led to the formation of two constitutional isomers (2a and 2b) that were obtained in an 80:20 ratio. Molecular structures of 2b were confirmed with the aid of X-ray crystallography. Compound 2 was crystallized in the triclinic, P-1, a = 8.8152 (8) Å, b = 10.0958 (9) Å, c = 12.6892 (10) Å, α = 68.549 (5)°, ß = 81.667 (5)°, γ = 68.229 (5)°, V = 976.04 (15) Å3, Z = 2, and was found in two isomeric forms regarding the position of the bromine atom. The antibacterial and antifungal activities of the prepared compounds were evaluated. CONCLUSIONS: Three new thiophene derivatives were synthesized in good yield. Antimicrobial screening revealed that compound 3 was a promising candidate as a potential antibacterial and antifungal agent; it exhibits remarkable activity against the studied bacterial strains, especially the gram negative bacteria E. coli in addition to some fungi. More work is needed to evaluate its safety and efficacy.

Photosynthesis at the far-red region of the spectrum in Acaryochloris marina

Acaryochloris marina is an oxygenic cyanobacterium that utilizes far-red light for photosynthesis. It has an expanded genome, which helps in its adaptability to the environment, where it can survive on low energy photons. Its major light absorbing pigment is chlorophyll d and it has α-carotene as a major carotenoid. Light harvesting antenna includes the external phycobilin binding proteins, which are hexameric rods made of phycocyanin and allophycocyanins, while the small integral membrane bound chlorophyll binding proteins are also present. There is specific chlorophyll a molecule in both the reaction center of Photosystem I (PSI) and PSII, but majority of the reaction center consists of chlorophyll d. The composition of the PSII reaction center is debatable especially the role and position of chlorophyll a in it. Here we discuss the photosystems of this bacterium and its related biology.

Synthesis, Molecular Structure Optimization, and Cytotoxicity Assay of a Novel 2-Acetyl-3-amino-5-[(2-oxopropyl)sulfanyl]-4-cyanothiophene.

A novel thiophene-containing compound, 2-acetyl-3-amino-5-[(2-oxopropyl)sulfanyl]-4-cyanothiophene (4) was synthesized by reaction of malononitrile with CS2 in the presence of K2CO3 under reflux in DMF and the subsequent reaction with chloroacetone followed by cyclization. This compound has been characterized by means of FT-IR, ¹H-NMR, (13)C-NMR, and mass spectrometry as well as elemental analysis. In addition, the molecular structures of compound 4 was determined by X-ray crystallography. The geometry of the molecule is stabilized by an intramolecular interaction between N1-H1···O1 to form S6 graf set ring motif. In the crystal, molecules are linked via N1-H2···O1 and C7-H7A···N2 interactions to form a three-dimensional network. Molecular structure and other spectroscopic properties of compound 4 were calculated using DFT B3LYP/6-31G (d,p) method. Results revealed a good agreement between the optimized geometric parameters and the observed X-ray structure. Furthermore, and by employing the natural bond orbital (NBO) method, the intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) interactions along with natural atomic charges at different sites, were calculated; results indicated strong n→π* ICT from LP(1)N5→BD*(2)C15-C16 (63.23 kcal/mol). In addition, the stabilization energy E(2) of the LP(2)O3→ BD*(1)N5-H6 ICT (6.63 kcal/mol) indicated the presence of intramolecular N-H···OH bonding. Similarly, calculations of the electronic spectra of compound 4 using, TD-DFT revealed a good agreement with the experimental data. Finally, compound 4 was evaluated for its in vitro cytotoxic effect against PC-3 and HeLa cell lines, as an anticancer agent, and found to be nontoxic.