5,7-dihydroxy-2-(3-hydroxy-4, 5-dimethoxy-phenyl)-chromen-4-one-a flavone from Bruguiera gymnorrhiza displaying anti-inflammatory properties.

OBJECTIVE: Bruguiera gymnorrhiza (BRG) (L.) Lamk (Rhizophoraceae), a mangrove species, is widely distributed in the Pacific region, eastern Africa, Indian subcontinent, and subtropical Australia. The leaves of this plant are traditionally used for treating burns and inflammatory lesions. This study isolates the bioactive compound from the methanol extract of BRG leaves and evaluates the possible mechanisms of anti-inflammatory activity involved. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Bioassay-guided fractionation of BRG was performed to identify the bioactive fraction (displaying inhibition of cyclooxygenase 2 [COX2] - 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX) activities and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) production at the tested concentrations of 100 and 10 µg/ml). The fractionation was performed by solvent extraction and preparative high-performance liquid chromatography. The bioactive compound was characterized by ultraviolet-visible, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The antioxidant potential was evaluated by electron spin resonance spectrum of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical at 250 µM. The effect of the compound was also studied on TNF-α converting enzyme and nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) activities at the concentrations 100, 10 and 1 µg/ml. RESULTS: Bioassay-guided purification of BRG revealed the presence of a flavone (5,7-dihydroxy-2- [3-hydroxy-4,5-dimethoxy-phenyl]-chromen-4-one) of molecular weight 330Da. It demonstrated more than 80% inhibition against COX2, 5-LOX activities and TNF-α production at 100 µg/ml. It also displayed 40% inhibition against DPPH radical at the tested concentration along with 23.1% inhibition of NF-κB activity at 100 µg/ml. CONCLUSIONS: The isolated methoxy-flavone may play a predominant role in the anti-inflammatory properties displayed by BRG leaves. Such activity may involve multiple mechanisms, namely (a) modulation of oxidative stress (b) inhibition of arachidonic acid metabolism and (c) downregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines probably through NF-κB inhibition.

Controlling the Microstructure of Reverse Micelles and Their Templating Effect on Shaping Nanostructures.

Reverse micelles as nanoreactors have been most successful in designing nanostructures of different sizes and shapes. Nevertheless, important questions regarding the explicit roles of intrinsic parameters in modifying soft colloid templates which eventually give rise to variety of nanostructures are still unresolved. In this paper, we have focused on this challenging aspect of microemulsion based synthesis of nanostructures, i.e., how the tunable parameters like water to surfactant molar ratio, solvent properties, and surfactant structure modify the microstructure (size/shape) of reverse micelles (surfactant/cosurfactant/oil/water). Further, we have elucidated the correlation between these nanoreactors with the size and morphology of the evolving nanostructures within the aqueous core (using in situ studies) as well as the finally obtained nanostructures. We have employed fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS), small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to obtain details on the microstructural transformation of reverse micelles and their templating behavior on designing nanostructures, at (near) single droplet level and in an ensemble. The structure (size/shape) of nanoreactors, i.e., reverse micelles, finally guides the size and shape of nanostructures. As the water content increases, it induces the micellar growth and subsequently the growth of nanostructures develops linearly up to a critical value beyond which the finite bending modulus of surfactant film triggers the structural rearrangement of microemulsion droplets (MEDs) and the linear plot shows deviation. Bulkiness of the solvent molecules modulates the ME droplets, and MEDs encapsulates nanostructures by influencing the curvature and rigidity of the surfactant film and results in smaller dimensions of the micellar core, which leads to nanostructures with large aspect ratio. The origin of this structural evolution may be explained in terms of solvent molecular structure, which affects the penetrability of solvent molecules into the surfactant tail region. Interestingly, MEDs with cationic surfactants feature the onset of one-dimensional micellar growth and the shape evolves into a nearly prolate spheriod. Consequently, the growth of the micellar core and dynamical exchange in an anisotropic manner leads to the formation of nanorods. The implication of such studies could be far reaching due to the geometry-dependent novel properties and potential applications of anisotropic nanostructures.

Spherical-to-cylindrical transformation of reverse micelles and their templating effect on the growth of nanostructures.

We discuss a complete mechanistic study on the anisotropic growth of zinc oxalate nanostructures within reverse micelles. We have employed small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to understand the detailed growth of the nanostructures. We have been able to observe the generation of nuclei and their aggregation to a critical size beyond which they form nanostructures of higher dimensions in self-assembled templates. One of our aims was to find a correlation between size and shape of microemulsion droplets (MDs) and that of the resulting nanostructures of zinc oxalate (ZO) which grow within the MDs. Combination of SAXS and DLS show in situ growth of nanoparticles in the individual droplets which consume the water-insoluble product formed and undergo exchange coalescence with other droplets. The structural transition of the MDs is captured by observing the change in shape anisotropy, together with a detailed structural analysis of micelles in which the nanostructures grow as a function of time. Importantly, once the reaction is triggered, the nucleation of the droplets start instantly, and a very short period is noticed where MDs become cylindrical with approximate aspect ratio of 4:1 in which nanostructures grow anisotropically and achieve an average critical size of 55 nm (elongated nanoparticles) signifying the existence of short nucleation-dominant particle growth period, beyond which a transition from elongated nanostructures to small rods is observed. The critical size for the elongated droplets is 80 nm in length and 18 nm in diameter, and these critical dimensions at the point of transition are a new finding about an asymmetric particle before the rods begin to start self-assembling. Once the shape of microemulsions turns cylindrical, the dynamical exchange with other microemulsions is very fast at both ends, resulting in the formation of nanorods of zinc oxalate and an increase in the aspect ratio of these rods. This growth process can be viewed as a morphologically templated nucleation process, and the droplets act as shaping vesicles for the formation of ZO nanorods. This study is significant since it attempts to correlate the size and shape of the reverse micellar (microemulsion) droplets with the newborn product nanoparticles inside the droplets and the subsequent growth of the nanoparticles within the droplets.

Understanding growth kinetics of nanorods in microemulsion: a combined fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering, and electron microscopy study.

Even though nanostructures of various shapes and sizes can be controlled by microemulsions, there is substantial difficulty in understanding their growth mechanism. The evolution of nanostructures from the time of mixing of reactants to their final stage is a heterogeneous process involving a variety of intermediates. To obtain a deeper insight into these kinetic steps, we studied the slow growth kinetics (extending over eight days) of iron oxalate nanorods inside the polar core of water-in-oil microemulsion droplets made of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide/1-butanol/isooctane. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) have been employed to monitor the nanostructure growth at (near) the single-droplet level and in an ensemble. Analyzing FCS data with suitable kinetic model we obtain transient dimer lifetime (28 µs) and the droplet fusion rates (and fusion tendency) on each day as the reaction proceeds. The droplet fusion rate is found to directly control the nanorod growth in microemulsion solution and attains its maximum value (3.55 × 10(4) s(-1)) on day 6, when long nanorods are found in TEM data, implying that more and more reactants are fed into the growing system at this stage. Combining FCS, DLS, and TEM results, we find three distinct periods in the entire growth process: a long nucleation-dominant nanoparticle growth period which forms nanoparticles of critical (average) size of ∼53 nm, followed by a short period where isotropic nanoparticles switch to anisotropic growth to form nanorods, and finally elongation of nanorods and growth (and shrinking) of nanoparticles.

Controlling the size and morphology of anisotropic nanostructures of nickel borate using microemulsions and their magnetic properties.

Anisotropic nanostructures of nickel borate with controlled size and morphology have been synthesized by a precursor-mediated route. The nickel boron precursor has been synthesized using microemulsions using Tergitol as a surfactant. Microemulsions with various co-surfactants (1-butanol, 1-hexanol and 1-octanol) have been used to obtain uniform nanorods (dia 3-5 nm, length 25 nm) and nanospindles (dia 30 nm, length 400 nm). A higher chain length of the co-surfactant (octanol) leads to more uniform rods rather than spindles (butanol). These nanorods show antiferromagnetic behavior with the Néel temperature ranging from 44 to 47 K. Though there is no marked variation in Neel temperature, the magnetic moment increases drastically with the anisotropy of nanorods (thinner rods).