Gambogic acid suppresses nasopharyngeal carcinoma via rewiring molecular network of cancer malignancy and immunosurveillance.

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a malignant tumor highly prevalent in Southeast Asia. The distant metastasis and disease recurrence are still unsolved clinical problems. In recent years, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) monomers have become significantly attractive due to their advantages. Using high throughput drug sensitivity screening, we identified gambogic acid (GA) as a common TCM monomer displaying multiple anti-NPC effects. GA could effectively inhibit the proliferation of low differentiated cells and highly metastatic cells in NPC via inducing apoptosis and G2/M cell cycle arrest. In addition, GA obviously repressed the abilities of cell clone, migration, invasion, angiogenesis and represented satisfied synergistic effects combined with chemotherapy. Importantly, we found the elevated immune checkpoint CD47 stimulated after chemotherapy was dramatically impaired by GA treatment. Mechanically, the network pharmacology analyses unraveled that the oncogenic signaling pathways including STATs were rewired by GA treatment. Taken together, our study reveals a molecular basis and provides a rationale for GA application as the treatment regime in NPC therapy in future.

Series of Cadmium(II) Coordination Polymers Based on a Versatile Multi-N-Donor Tecton or Mixed Carboxylate Ligands: Synthesis, Structure, and Selectively Sensing Property.

Five Cd(II) metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), [Cd(HL)2] (1), [Cd(HL)2(H2O)2] (2), [Cd3(HL)2(obda)2] (3), [Cd2(HL)2(ohmbda)(DMA)(H2O)] (4), and [Cd2(HL)(btc)(H2O)2]·3H2O (5), were prepared by reactions of Cd(NO3)2·4H2O with 1-(1H-imidazol-4-yl)-4-(4H-tetrazol-5-yl)benzene (H2L) or mixed carboxylate ancillary ligands of 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid (H2obda), 5-hydroxy-1,3-benzenedicarboxylic acid (H2ohmbda), and 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylic acid (H3btc), respectively. Their structures have been characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis, infrared spectroscopy (IR), thermogravimetric analysis, and powder X-ray diffraction. Compounds 1 and 2 are supramolecular isomeric frameworks without consideration of the solvent molecules. Complex 1 exhibits a binodal (3, 5)-connected two-dimensional (2D) layer structure with the point (Schläfli) symbol of (52·6)(55·64·7), while complex 2 shows a 2D + 2D → 3D (three-dimensional) framework. Complex 3 is a (3, 5, 6)-connected tetranodal 3D net with the point (Schläfli) symbol of (4·82)2(45·6·84)2(45·65)2(48·66·8). Compound 4 is a (3, 3, 8)-connected trinodal 3D net with the point (Schläfli) symbol based on a binuclear [Cd2N2O] subunit, while 5 is a 2-nodal (3, 4)-connected 2D V2O5-type network based on [Cd2N2(COO)2] SBU. The studies of molecular sensing properties show that the luminescent MOFs can be employed as fluorescent sensors for the detection of Fe3+ and nitro compounds. Compound 1 and 3 exhibit quenching responses for Fe3+ in dimethylformamide solution with detection limits of 2.3 × 10-6 and 8.6 × 10-7 M, respectively. Meanwhile, compound 5 can sense 4-nitrophenol with a detection limit as low as 5.75 × 10-7 M.

Metal(II) Coordination Polymers Derived from Mixed 4-Imidazole Ligands and Carboxylates: Syntheses, Topological Structures, and Properties.

Four new metal⁻organic coordination polymers [Cu(L)(mpa)]·3H2O (1), [Co(L)(mpa)]·H2O (2), [Zn(L)(mpa)]·H2O (3), and [Cd(L)(mpa)(H2O)]·H2O (4) were synthesized by reactions of the corresponding metal(II) salts based on mixed ligands of 1,4-di(1H-imidazol-4-yl)benzene (L) and 4-methylphthalic acid (H2mpa), respectively. The structures of the complexes were characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR spectroscopy, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Compound 1 exhibits a binodal 4-connected three dimensional (3D) architecture with (65·8)-CdSO4 topology, while complexes 2 and 3 are isostructural and have two-dimensional (2D) layer structure with (4, 4) sql topology based on the binuclear metal subunits. Complex 4 has the same 2D layer structure with (4, 4) sql topology as complexes 2 and 3, but the inclined interpenetration of parallel sets of layers result in the formation with 2D + 2D → 3D framework. The activated sample 1 shows selective CO2 uptake over N2. The photoluminiscent properties together with quantum yield (QY) and luminescence lifetime are also investigated for complexes 3 and 4 in the solid state at room temperature.