Design of novel N-phenylnicotinamides as selective cyclooxygenase-1 inhibitors

A series of N-phenylnicotinamides (1-40) were designed and evaluated in vitro for their COX inhibitory activities. Most of the synthesized compounds were proved to be potent and selective inhibitors of COX-1. Compound 28 showed the most potent COX-1 inhibitory activity (COX-1 IC₅₀ = 0.68 ± 0.07 μM) and good selectivity (COX-2 IC₅₀ >100 μM). This compound may be useful as a lead compound for superior COX-1 inhibitors. On the basis of the biological results, structure-activity relationships for the COX-1-inhibitory activities of the synthesized N-phenylnicotinamides were discussed concisely.     

Thermal solvent-free synthesis of novel pyrazolyl chalcones and pyrazolines as potential antimicrobial agents

A novel approach was adopted for the synthesis of series of new pyrazolyl chalcones (3a-c) by the reaction of 5-chloro-3-methyl-1-phenylpyrazole-4-carboxaldehyde (1) with different 5-acetylbarbituric acid derivatives (2a-c) under thermal solvent-free condition. The chalcones were then converted to the corresponding pyrazolines (4a-c) under the same condition in excellent yields. All the synthesized compounds were characterized using elemental analysis and spectral data (IR, ¹H NMR, and mass spectrometry). The synthesized compounds were tested for their antimicrobial activity by disk diffusion assay with slight modifications against Gram-positive, Gram-negative strains of bacteria as well as fungal strains. The investigation of antimicrobial screening revealed that compounds (3a-4c) showed good antibacterial and antifungal activities, respectively. Among the screened compounds, 3b showed more potent inhibitory activity (MIC = 12.5 μg/ml) nearly to that of standard antibiotics ciprofloxacin, griseofulvin and fluconazole.     

Antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-hyperglycaemic activities of heterocyclic homoprostanoid derivatives

A series of 19 heterocyclic homoprostanoids were synthesized from easily available oleic and ricinoleic acids and evaluated for their possible antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-hyperlipidaemic activities. Compounds with thioxo- and oxoimidazole ring (1) and (2) have shown potent antioxidant activity with IC₅₀ values 0.23 ± 0.09 and 0.41 ± 0.01 mM comparable with standard ascorbic acid. Compound (3) with a quinoxaline ring showed maximum inhibition of BSA denaturation at 1 mM concentration and comparable with standard diclofenac. Incorporation of electron withdrawing substitutions like chloro- and nitro-groups in the quinoxaline ring has resulted in an increase anti-inflammatory activity. Test compounds (3), (3a) and (3c) showed modest inhibition of DPP-IV in vitro. However, the unsubstituted quinoxaline (3) and substituted quinoxalines (3b and 3c) reduced plasma glucose levels indicating the presence of hypoglycemic activity.     

Substituted imidazole derivatives as novel cardiovascular agents

A series of novel substituted imidazole derivatives were synthesized and have been screened in vivo for their hypotensive and acute toxicity activities. Out of seventeen compounds eight compounds (2b, 2c, 3b, 3c, 3f, 4a, 4b and 4c) have shown good hypotensive and bradycardiac responses. Compounds 3b, 3c, 3f and 4c have shown better activity than reference drug clonidine. All the compounds have shown ALD50 >1000 mg/kg with maximum in 2e and 4c (>1200 mg/kg).     

MAO inhibitory activity modulation: 3-Phenylcoumarins versus 3-benzoylcoumarins

With the aim of finding the structural features for the human MAO inhibitory activity and selectivity, in the present communication we report the synthesis, pharmacological evaluation and a comparative study of a new series of 3-phenylcoumarins (compounds 1-4) and 3-benzoylcoumarins (compounds 5-8). A bromo atom and a methoxy/hydroxy substituent were introduced in these scaffolds, at six and eight positions of the coumarin moiety, respectively. The synthesized compounds 1-8 were evaluated as MAO-A and B inhibitors using R-(−)-deprenyl and iproniazide as reference compounds. The presence or absence of a carbonyl group between the coumarin and the phenyl substituent in 3 position remarks, respectively, the MAO-A or MAO-B inhibitory activity. Some of the new compounds showed MAO-B inhibitory activities in the low nanomolar range. Compound 2 (IC₅₀ = 1.35 nM) showed higher inhibitory activity than the R-(−)-deprenyl (IC₅₀ = 19.60 nM) and higher MAO-B selectivity, with more than 74,074-fold inhibition level, respecting to the MAO-A isoform.     

Design and synthesis of 3-(azol-1-yl)phenylpropanes as microbicidal spermicides for prophylactic contraception

We designed a series of 25 3-(azol-1-yl)phenylpropanes which yielded 10 compounds (3, 4, 7, 8, 13, 14, 19, 21, 23, 26) that irreversibly immobilized 100% human sperm at 1% (w/v) concentration in 60 s; 12 compounds (8, 9, 15, 16, 19-21, 23-25, 27, 28) that showed potent microbicidal activity at 12.5-50 μg/mL against Trichomonas vaginalis; and 17 compounds (3-11, 13, 15, 19, 21, 23, 26, 28, 30) that exhibited potent anticandida activity with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 12.5-50 μg/mL. Almost all the compounds exhibited high level of safety towards normal vaginal flora (Lactobacillus) and human cervical (HeLa) cells in comparison to the marketed spermicide nonoxynol-9 (N-9). All the biological activities were evaluated in vitro. Two compounds (4, 8) with good safety profile exhibited multiple (spermicidal, antitrichomonas and anticandida) activities, warranting further lead optimization for furnishing a prophylactic vaginal contraceptive.     

Design, synthesis, and evaluation of bromo-retrochalcone derivatives as protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B inhibitors

A series of bromo-retrochalcones was designed, synthesized and evaluated as PTP1B inhibitors based on licochalcone A and E. Compounds 6, 12, 13, 14, 25, 36, 37, 39, and 41 showed potent inhibitory effects against PTP1B, and compound 37, the most potent among the series, had an IC₅₀ value of 1.9 μM, about two-fold better than that of the positive control, ursolic acid.     

Synthesis of some new 1,3,5-trisubstituted pyrazolines bearing benzene sulfonamide as anticancer and anti-inflammatory agents

Thirteen new 2-pyrazoline derivatives bearing benzenesulfonamide moiety (2a-m) were synthesized by condensing appropriate chalcones with 4-hydrazinonbenzenesulfonamide hydrochloride and tested for anticancer and anti-inflammatory actions. According to the protocol of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in vitro disease-oriented human cells screening panel assay compounds 2b, 2c, 2e, 2f and 2g exhibited considerable antitumor activities against the entire tested tumor cell lines and showed effective growth inhibition GI₅₀ (MG-MID) values of 2.63, 2.57, 6.61, 3.31 and 2.57 μM, respectively, beside a cyclostatic activity TGI (MG-MID) 9.54, 8.51, 24.0, 19.9 and 8.71 μM, respectively. Two compounds 2g and 2k showed more potent anti-inflammatory activity than celecoxib at 5 h in carrageenan-induced rat paw edema bioassay. These compounds (2g and 2k) proved to have superior gastrointestinal safety profiles as compared to celecoxib, when tested for their ulcerogenic effects. Compounds 2g and 2k showed no inhibition against the enzymatic activity of bovine COX-2 (in vitro).     

Palladium(II), platinum(II), ruthenium(II) and mercury(II) complexes of potentially tridentate Schiff base ligands of (E, N, O) type (E = S, Se, Te): Synthesis, crystal structures and applications in Heck and Suzuki coupling reactions

Schiff bases of 2-hydroxybenzophenone (HBP) (C₆H₅)(2-HOC₆H₄)CN(CH₂)_nEAr (L1/L2: E = S, Ar = Ph, n = 2/3; L3/L4: E = Se, Ar = Ph, n = 2/3; L5/L6: E = Te, Ar = 4-MeOC₆H₄, n = 2/3) and their complexes [PdCl(L-H)] (L = L1−L6; 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11), [PtCl(L3-H/L5-H)] (4/8), [PtCl₂(L4/L6)₂] (6/12), [(p-cymene)RuCl(L5/L6)]Cl (9/13) and [HgBr₂(L5/L6)₂] (10/14) have been synthesized and characterized by proton, carbon-13, selenium-77 and tellurium-125 NMR, IR and mass spectra. Single crystal structures of L1, 1, 3, 4, 5 and 7 were solved. The Pd-E bond distances (Å): 2.2563(6) (E = S), 2.3575(6)−2.392(2) (E = Se); 2.5117(5)−2.5198(5) (E = Te) are near the lower end of the bond length range known for them. The Pt-Se bond length, 2.3470(8) Å, is also closer to the short values reported so far. The Heck and Suzuki reaction were carried out using complexes 1, 3, 5 and 7 as catalysts under aerobic condition. The percentage yields for trans product in Heck reaction were found upto 85%.     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 4-styrylcoumarin derivatives as inhibitors of TNF-α and IL-6 with anti-tubercular activity

A series of 4-styrylcoumarin have been synthesized by Knoevenagel condensation between substituted 4-methylcoumarin-3-carbonitrile and different heterocyclic or aromatic aldehydes. 4-Methylcoumarin-3-carbonitrile has been synthesized by the base catalyzed reaction between substituted 2-hydroxyacetophenone and ethyl cyanoacetate. The structures of the newly synthesized compounds were confirmed by ¹H NMR, IR and mass spectral analysis. All the compounds were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory activity (against TNF-α and IL-6) and anti-tubercular activity. Compounds 6a, 6h and 6j exhibited promising activity against IL-6 with 72-87% inhibition and compound 6v showed potent activity against TNF-α with 73% inhibition at 10 μM concentration. Whereas compounds 6n, 6o, 6r and 6u showed very good anti-tubercular activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv strain at <6.25 μM.     

Synthesis of rotenoid derivatives with cytotoxic and topoisomerase II inhibitory activities

6-Deoxyclitoriacetal (1) and a series of 11 further derivatives of it (2-12) were synthesized and evaluated for their cytotoxic and topoisomerase IIα inhibitory activities. Compounds bearing epoxide (2), morpholine (6) and benzylamine (10) moieties showed promising in vitro cytotoxic activities against four cancer cell lines, with IC₅₀ values ranging from 0.38 to 0.73 μM. These three compounds also strongly inhibited topoisomerase II activity at 68.3-93.5% and showed a moderately high DNA intercalating property.     

Evaluation of dihydropyrimidin-(2H)-one analogues and rhodanine derivatives as tyrosinase inhibitors

A series of dihydropyrimidin-(2H)-one analogues and rhodanine derivatives were synthesized and their inhibitory effects on the diphenolase activity of mushroom tyrosinase were evaluated. The results showed that some of the synthesized compounds exhibited significant inhibitory activities. Especially, compound 15 bearing a hydroxyethoxyl group at position-4 of phenyl ring exhibited most potent tyrosinase inhibitory activity with IC₅₀ value of 0.56 mM. The inhibition mechanism analysis of compound 15 demonstrated that the inhibitory effect of the compound on the tyrosinase was irreversible. These results suggested that such compounds might be served as lead compounds for further designing new potential tyrosinase inhibitors.     

Dibenzylideneacetone analogues as novel Plasmodium falciparum inhibitors

A series of dibenzylideneacetones (A1-A12) and some of their pyrazolines (B1-B4) were synthesized and evaluated in vitro for blood stage antiplasmodial properties in Plasmodium falciparum culture using SYBR-green-I fluorescence assay. The compound (1E, 4E)-1,5-bis(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)penta-1,4-dien-3-one (A9) was found to be the most active with IC₅₀ of 1.97 μM against chloroquine-sensitive strain (3D7) and 1.69 μM against chloroquine-resistant field isolate (RKL9). The MTT based cytotoxicity assay on HeLa cell line has confirmed that A9 is selective in its action against malaria parasite (with a therapeutic index of 166). Our results revealed that these compounds exhibited promising antiplasmodial activities which can be further explored as potential leads for the development of cheaper, safe, effective and potent drugs against chloroquine-resistant malarial parasites.     

Novel fungicidal benzylsulfanyl-phenylguanidines

A series of substituted benzylsulfanyl-phenylamines was synthesized, of which four substituted benzylsulfanyl-phenylguanidines (665, 666, 667 and 684) showed potent fungicidal activity (minimal fungicidal concentration, MFC ? 10 μM for Candida albicans and Candida glabrata). A benzylsulfanyl-phenyl scaffold with an unsubstituted guanidine resulted in less active compounds (MFC = 50-100 μM), whereas substitution with an unsubstituted amine group resulted in compounds without fungicidal activity. Compounds 665, 666, 667 and 684 also showed activity against single C. albicans biofilms and biofilms consisting of C. albicans and Staphylococcus epidermidis (minimal concentration resulting in 50% eradication of the biofilm, BEC50 ? 121 μM for both biofilm setups). Compounds 665 and 666 combined potent fungicidal (MFC = 5 μM) and bactericidal activity (minimal bactericidal concentration, MBC for S. epidermidis ? 4 μM). In an in vivo Caenorhabditis elegans model, compounds 665 and 667 exhibited less toxicity than 666 and 684. Moreover, addition of those compounds to Candida-infected C. elegans cultures resulted in increased survival of Candida-infected worms, demonstrating their in vivo efficacy in a mini-host model.     

Bis(pyrazolyl) palladium(II), platinum(II) and gold(III) complexes: Syntheses, molecular structures and substitution reactions with l-cysteine

A series of pyrazolyl palladium(II), platinum(II) and gold(III) complexes, [PdCl₂(3,5-R₂bpza)] {R = H (1), R = Me (2), bpza = bis-pyrazolyl acetic acid}, [PtCl₂(3,5-R₂bpza)] {R = H (3a), R = Me (4)}, [AuCl₂(3,5-R₂bpza)]Cl {R = H (5a), R = Me (6a)} and [PdCl₂(3,5-R₂bpzate)] {R = Me (7)} have been synthesised and structurally characterised. Single crystal X-ray crystallography showed that the pyrazolyl ligands exhibit N^N-coordination with the metals. Anticancer activities of six complexes 1-6a were investigated against CHO cells and were found to have low activities. Substitution reactions of selected complexes 1, 2, 3a and 5a with l-cysteine show that the low anticancer activities compounds and that the rate of substitution with sulfur-containing compounds is not the cause of the low anticancer activities.     

Synthesis and evaluation of 1,5-diaryl-substituted tetrazoles as novel selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors

A series of 1,5-diaryl-substituted tetrazole derivatives was synthesized via conversion of readily available diaryl amides into corresponding imidoylchlorides followed by reaction with sodium azide. All compounds were evaluated by cyclooxygenase (COX) assays in vitro to determine COX-1 and COX-2 inhibitory potency and selectivity. Tetrazoles 3a-e showed IC₅₀ values ranging from 0.42 to 8.1 mM for COX-1 and 2.0 to 200 μM for COX-2. Most potent compound 3c (IC₅₀ (COX-2) = 2.0 μM) was further used in molecular modeling docking studies.     

Insights into electronic and structural properties of novel Pd(II) salen-type complexes

Novel palladium(II) complexes with salen-type ligands based on 3-methylsalicyladehyde and a set of aliphatic diamines (C1 to C4) have been synthesised and characterized by spectroscopic techniques (UV-Vis and FTIR), Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations and single-crystal X-ray diffraction for C1 and C4. X-ray diffraction analysis of these complexes was focused on coordination sphere and supramolecular arrangements. In the two compounds, the molecules form dimers, being the most relevant intermolecular interactions the hydrogen bonds of the type C-H?O, C-H?π and π?π stacking interactions between the six-membered metallocycles.Electronic spectra of all Pd(II) complexes are dominated by charge transfer and intraligand bands at λ < 400 nm. DFT calculations showed that the HOMO is ligand-dominated, with the metal contribution being ∼18% for all complexes. This suggests that the structural/electronic differences between the ligands do not influence significantly the participation of metal orbitals in HOMO. All the complexes exhibit dipole moments with the same direction, from the aldehyde moiety towards the imine bridge with C2 and C3 showing quite similar values, μ_C2 = 5.49 and μ_C3 = 5.54 D, whereas complexes C1 and C4 show slightly higher values: μ_C1 = 5.79 and μ_C4 = 6.17 D. The magnitude of bond lengths and angles predicted by DFT calculations are comparable to those determined by X-ray crystallography.The experimental vibrational frequencies of the Pd(II) complexes were correlated with the values estimated by DFT calculations. The good agreement between the experimental and theoretical vibrational data allowed the assignment of relevant IR bands to molecular vibration modes.     

Synthesis and antitubercular activity of novel Schiff bases derived from d-mannitol

Six Schiff base derivatives of d-mannitol, 1,6-dideoxy-1,6-bis-{[(E)-arylmethylidene]amino}-d-mannitol (6: aryl = XC₆H₄: X = o-, m- and p- Cl or NO₂), have been synthesized and evaluated for their in vitro antibacterial activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H₃₇Rv using the Alamar Blue susceptibility test and the activity expressed as the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) in μg/mL. All three nitro derivatives exhibit significant activities: activities of (6d: X = o-NO₂), (6e: X = m-NO₂) and (6f: X = p-NO₂) are 12.5, 25.0 and 25.0 μg/mL, respectively. When compared with first line drugs, such as ethambutol, they can be considered as a good starting point to develop new lead compounds for the treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. Characterization of the new compounds 6 is generally achieved spectroscopically. The structure of compound 3 has been confirmed by X-ray crystallography.     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of glycal-derived novel tetrahydrofuran 1,2,3-triazoles by ‘click’ chemistry

Thirteen new 1,2,3-triazoles (5a-e, 15a-d, 17a-b, 19, and 21) were synthesized by ‘click’ reaction of sugar-derived azides with commercially available acetylenes. The synthesized triazoles were tested in vitro for their biological activity, and compound 5b displayed both antibacterial and antifungal activities at an MIC value of 12.5 μg/mL, while compounds 15b and 19 showed antibacterial activity at an MIC value of 25 μg/mL.