Transcriptional and Histone Acetylation Changes Associated with CRE Elements Expose Key Factors Governing the Regulatory Circuit in the Early Stage of Huntington's Disease Models.

Huntington's disease (HD) is a disorder caused by an abnormal expansion of trinucleotide CAG repeats within the huntingtin (Htt) gene. Under normal conditions, the CREB Binding Protein interacts with CREB elements and acetylates Lysine 27 of Histone 3 to direct the expression of several genes. However, mutant Htt causes depletion of CBP, which in turn induces altered histone acetylation patterns and transcriptional deregulation. Here, we have studied a differential expression analysis and H3K27ac variation in 4- and 6-week-old R6/2 mice as a model of juvenile HD. The analysis of differential gene expression and acetylation levels were integrated into Gene Regulatory Networks revealing key regulators involved in the altered transcription cascade. Our results show changes in acetylation and gene expression levels that are related to impaired neuronal development, and key regulators clearly defined in 6-week-old mice are proposed to drive the downstream regulatory cascade in HD. Here, we describe the first approach to determine the relationship among epigenetic changes in the early stages of HD. We determined the existence of changes in pre-symptomatic stages of HD as a starting point for early onset indicators of the progression of this disease.

Cucurbit[7]uril as a Supramolecular Catalyst in Base-Catalyzed Reactions. Experimental and Theoretical Studies on Carbonate and Thiocarbonate Hydrolysis Reactions.

Cucurbit[7]uril (CB7) catalyzes the hydrolysis reaction of bis(4-nitrophenyl)carbonate (1) but inhibits that of bis(4-nitrophenyl)thiocarbonate (2). Two relevant CB7 effects are proposed, a base-catalyst mediated by the CB7 portal and an inhibitory role attributed to the lower interaction of the thiocarbonyl group with the solvent in the host cavity, respectively.

New lead elements for histamine H3 receptor ligands in the pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidine class.

This work describes the microwave assisted synthesis of twelve novel histamine H3 receptor ligands. They display pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidine derivatives with rigidized aliphatic amines as warheads. The compounds were screened for H3R and H4R binding affinities in radioligand displacement assays and the most potent compounds were evaluated for H3R binding properties in vitro and in docking studies. The combination of a rigidized H3R warhead and the pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidine scaffold resulted in selective activity at the H3 receptor with a pKi value of 6.90 for the most potent compound. A bipiperidine warhead displayed higher affinity than a piperazine or morpholine motif, while a naphthyl moiety in the arbitrary region increased affinity compared to a phenyl derivative. The compounds can be starting points for novel, simply synthesized histamine H3 receptor ligands.