An 1H NMR study of the cytarabine degradation in clinical conditions to avoid drug waste, decrease therapy costs and improve patient compliance in acute leukemia.

Cytarabine, the 4-amino-1-(ß-D-arabinofuranosyl)-2(1H)-pyrimidinone, (ARA-C) is an antimetabolite cytidine analogue used worldwide as key drug in the management of leukaemia. As specified in the manufacturers' instructions, once the components-sterile water and cytarabine powder-are unpackaged and mixed, the solution begins to degrade after 6 hours at room temperature and 12 hours at 4°C. To evaluate how to avoid wasting the drug in short-term, low-dose treatment regimens, the reconstituted samples, stored at 25°C and 4°C, were analyzed every day of the test week by reversed-phase HPLC and high-field NMR spectroscopy. All the samples remained unchanged for the entire week, which corresponds to the time required to administer the entire commercial drug package during low-dose therapeutic regimens. The drug solution was stored in a glass container at 4°C in an ordinary freezer and drawn with sterile plastic syringes; during this period, no bacterial or fungal contamination was observed. Our findings show that an cytarabine solution prepared and stored in the original vials retains its efficacy and safety and can, therefore, be divided into small doses to be administered over more days, thus avoiding unnecessary expensive and harmful waste of the drug preparation. Moreover, patients who require daily administration of the drug could undergo the infusion at home without need to go to hospital. The stability of the aliquots would help decrease hospitalization costs.

Antitumor agents 7. Synthesis, antiproliferative activity and molecular modeling of new l-lysine-conjugated pyridophenoxazinones as potent DNA-binding ligands and topoisomerase IIα inhibitors.

A series of l-lysine-conjugated pyridophenoxazinones 2-5 and 2'-5' were designed and synthesized for developing compounds with multimodal anticancer potentialities. All compounds inhibited the proliferation of a panel of human liquid and solid neoplastic cell lines. 2 and 5 were the most active compounds with IC50 values in the submicromolar range. UV-vis, 1H NMR, unwinding, and docking experiments demonstrated that they intercalate between the middle 5'-GC-3' base pairs with the carboxamide side chain lying into major groove. Charge-transfer contribution to the complex stability, evaluated by ab initio calculations, was found to correlate with cytotoxicity. Relaxation and cleavage assays showed that 2 and 5 selectively target Topo IIα over Topo IIß and stimulate the formation of covalent Topo II-DNA complexes, functioning as poisons. Moreover, compound 5 induced DNA damage and arrested MCF-7 cells at the G2/M phase. Altogether, the work provides interesting structure-activity relationships in the pyridophenoxazinone-l-lysine conjugate series and identifies 5 as a promising candidate for further in vivo evaluation.

Melt-spun bioactive sutures containing nanohybrids for local delivery of anti-inflammatory drugs.

In this work, a novel concept is introduced in drug-eluting fibres to ensure a good control of drug delivery features and wide applicability to different bioactive compounds. Composite bioactive sutures based on fibre grade poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) and loaded with the anti-inflammatory drug Diclofenac (Dic) or a Dic nanohybrid where the drug is intercalated in a synthetic hydrotalcite (Mg/Al hydroxycarbonate) (HT-Dic) were developed. Fibres were prepared by melt-spinning at different PCL/HT-Dic/Dic ratios and analysed in terms of morphology, mechanical properties and drug release features. Results emphasized that tensile properties of fibres are clearly affected by Dic or HT-Dic addition, while the presence of knots has limited influence on the mechanical behaviour of the sutures. Release of Dic strongly depends on how Dic is loaded in the fibre (as free or nanohybrid) whereas the combination of free Dic and HT-Dic can allow a further tuning of release profile. In vivo experiments show a reduction of inflammatory responses associated with Dic-loaded fibers. Thus, a proof of principle is provided for a novel class of bioactive sutures integrating advanced controlled-release technologies.

Nutraceutical properties and polyphenolic profile of berry skin and wine of Vitis vinifera L. (cv. Aglianico).

Red grapes are rich in phenolics, flavonoids, anthocyanins and resveratrol, all substances which have been suggested as having nutraceutical and health benefits. The berry skin and wine of grape cultivar Vitis vinifera L. (cv. Aglianico), grown in Basilicata (Southern Italy) were examined to determinate the presence of the above mentioned compounds as well as to establish the inorganic cation profile. HPLC analysis coupled with LC-ESI/MS/MS detected high contents of total flavonols and anthocyanins in berry skin and wine. The wine made with the same grape used for berry skin assays showed a notable presence of quercetin-3-O-glucoside (39.4% of total flavonols), and malvidin and petunidin derivatives (63.9% and 10.8% of total anthocyanins, respectively). The strong antioxidant ROS-scavenging activity, determined by both DPPH and FRAP assays, and the high resveratrol content confer high sensory characteristics resulted to be associated with positive nutraceutical properties of these grapes and wine. The level of cis-resveratrol was lower than trans-resveratrol in both berry skin and wine reaching 44.1mg/kg and 0.3mg/l, respectively. The cation profile presents low levels of Ca, Cu, K, Fe, Zn and Cd compared to numerous, important red wines, such as Monastrell and Tempranillo.

Mechanochemistry of ibuprofen pharmaceutical.

In this paper mechanochemistry has been studied in view of possible application to detoxification of expired pharmaceuticals. The experiments have been carried out with a commercial medication containing ibuprofen ((RS)-2-(4-(2-methylpropyl)phenyl)propanoic acid) which has been submitted to prolonged milling up to 40h. When Al(OH)(3) is used as co-reagent, the first degradation step induced by the mechanochemical treatment is an acid-base reaction with the ibuprofen carboxylic acid group. The subsequent degradation follows a complex pathway leading to 1-(4-isobutylphenyl)ethanone, 1-isobutyl-4-vinylbenzene and 2-(4-(3-methylbutan-2-yl)phenyl)propan-1-ol after 10h milling and, in addition, 1-(4-acetylphenyl)-2-methylpropan-1-one, 1-(4-(1-hydroxy-2-methylpropyl)phenyl)ethanone and 1-(4-(2-hydroxy-2-methylpropyl)phenyl)ethanone after 40h milling. The degradation reaction path and products have been identified by means of FT-IR spectroscopy, thin layer chromatography, NMR spectroscopy, mass spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The observed ibuprofen decarboxylation makes the drug simultaneously lose both its pharmaceutical activity and toxicity.

Anthocyanin composition and extractability in berry skin and wine of Vitis vinifera L. cv. Aglianico.

BACKGROUND: The present article reports the anthocyanin content in the berry skin and wine of the Italian red grape cultivar Aglianico (clone VCR11 grafted onto 1103 Paulsen), one of the most ancient vines and famous for its deep-red colour. Anthocyanins were extracted from frozen berry skin in an acidified methanol solution. The extraction mixtures, monitored for 120 h, were analysed by high-performance liquid chromatography. RESULTS: The extraction from berry skin of delphinidin, petunidin and malvidin appeared to be a time-independent process, whereas the concentration of peonidin increased linearly with time. Peonidin-O-acetyl-glucoside was transferred from skin more slowly than petunidin-O-acetyl-glucoside and malvidin-O-acetyl-glucoside. The anthocyanin composition of the resulting wine showed that the total anthocyanin content was about one-tenth of the corresponding berry skin content. The ratio acetyl/coumaroyl anthocyanins in the wine was sharply higher than the value in berry skin (0.85 and 0.10, respectively), indicating an enrichment of acetyl derivatives in the wine. CONCLUSION: Levels of single anthocyanins in wine were not always correlated with those detected in grapes, as they were affected by winemaking. The high values of some anthocyanins in Aglianico wine could ameliorate its quality, increasing the chromatic properties, aging stability and product acceptance.

An NMR Study of the Bortezomib Degradation under Clinical Use Conditions.

The (R)-3-methyl-1-((S)-3-phenyl-2-(pyrazine-2-carboxamido)propanamido)butyl-boronic acid, bortezomib (BTZ), which binds the 20S proteasome subunit and causes a large inhibition of its activity, is a peptidomimetic boronic drug mainly used for the treatment of multiple myeloma. Commercial BTZ, stabilized as mannitol derivative, has been investigated under the common conditions of the clinical use because it is suspected to be easily degradable in the region of its boronic moiety. Commercial BTZ samples, reconstituted according to the reported commercial instructions and stored at 4 degrees C, were analyzed by high-field nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy in comparison with identical samples bubbled with air and argon, respectively. All the samples remained unchanged for a week. After a month, the air filled samples showed the presence of two main degradation products (6% of starting material), the N-(1-(1-hydroxy-3-methylbutylamino)-1-oxo-3-phenylpropan-2-yl) pyrazine-2-carboxamide (BTZ1; 5%, determined from NMR integration) and the (S)-N-(1-(3-methylbutanamido)-1-oxo-3-phenylpropan-2-yl)pyrazine-2-carboxamide (BTZ2; 1%, determined from NMR integration), identified on the basis of their chemical and spectroscopic properties. The BTZ1 and BTZ2 finding suggests that, under the common condition of use and at 4 degrees C, commercial BTZ-mannitol is stable for a week, and that, in time, it undergoes slow oxidative deboronation which partially inactivates the product. Low temperature and scarce contact with air decrease the degradation process.

Antitumor agents 6. Synthesis, structure-activity relationships, and biological evaluation of spiro[imidazolidine-4,3'-thieno[2,3-g]quinoline]-tetraones and spiro[thieno[2,3-g]quinoline-3,5'-[1,2,4]triazinane]-tetraones with potent antiproliferative activity.

Two series of quinolinquinone derivatives, 2'H-spiro[imidazolidine-4,3'-thieno[2,3-g]quinoline]-2,4',5,9'-tetraones (2a-n) and 2H-spiro[thieno[2,3-g]quinoline-3,5'-[1,2,4]triazinane]-3',4,6',9-tetraones (3a-e), were designed and synthesized using the previously described ethyl 3-amino-4,9-dioxo-2,3,4,9-tetrahydrothieno[2,3-g]quinoline-3-carboxylate (1) as a starting material. All compounds were evaluated for their antiproliferative activity against a panel of representative liquid and solid human tumor cell lines and exhibit IC(50) values in the micromolar/submicromolar range. Series 2 displayed higher cytotoxicity than did series 3. The nature of the substituents on both imidazoline and triazinane N1 nitrogen markedly affected the activity profile of these series. Spectrophotometric and fluorescence measurements as well as unwinding assays performed on the most cytotoxic compounds, 2c, 2g, and 2k, showed that they are nonintercalative DNA agents and inhibit the catalytic activity of Topo II in a concentration-dependent mode. 2g was the most active Topo II inhibitor with activity levels comparable to those of VP-16.

Antitumor agents. 5. synthesis, structure-activity relationships, and biological evaluation of dimethyl-5H-pyridophenoxazin-5-ones, tetrahydro-5h-benzopyridophenoxazin-5-ones, and 5h-benzopyridophenoxazin-5-ones with potent antiproliferative activity.

New antiproliferative compounds, dimethyl-5H-pyrido[3,2-a]phenoxazin-5-ones (1-6), tetrahydro-5H-benzopyrido[2,3-j]phenoxazin-5-ones (7-9), and 5H-benzopyrido[3,2-a]phenoxazin-5-ones (10-12) were synthesized and evaluated against representative human neoplastic cell lines. Dimethyl derivatives 1-6 were more active against carcinoma than leukemia cell lines. The tetrahydrobenzo derivatives 7-9 were scarcely active, whereas the corresponding benzo derivatives 10-12 showed notable cytotoxicity against a majority of the tested cell lines. Molecular modeling studies indicated that the high potency of 10 and 11, the most cytotoxic compounds of the whole series, could be due to the position of the condensed benzene ring, which favors pi-pi stacking interactions with purine and pyrimidine bases in the DNA active site. Biological studies suggested that 10-12 have no effect on human topoisomerases I and II and that they induce arrest at the G2/M phase.

Thiazolidin-4-one formation. Mechanistic and synthetic aspects of the reaction of imines and mercaptoacetic acid under microwave and conventional heating.

Microwave irradiation of a mixture of benzylidene-anilines and mercaptoacetic acid in benzene gives 1,3-thiazolidin-4-ones in very high yield (65-90%), whereas the same reaction performed through using the conventional method, at reflux temperature, requires a much longer time and gives a much lower yield (25-69%). This difference seems to be due to some intermediates and by-products formed during the conventional reaction. On the basis of 1H NMR studies, two different mechanisms, acting in benzene and in DMF, respectively, have been hypothesized for the thiazolidin-4-one system formation.

Observed and calculated 1H- and 13C-NMR chemical shifts of substituted 5H-pyrido[3,2-a]- and 5H-pyrido[2,3-a]phenoxazin-5-ones and of some 3H-phenoxazin-3-one derivatives.

Carbon and proton NMR spectra of several substituted 5H-pyrido[3,2-a]-, 5H-pyrido[2,3-a]phenoxazin-5-ones and 3H-phenoxazin-3-one derivatives have been assigned, and the experimental chemical shifts have been compared with the results of density functional calculations employing large basis sets. Solvent effects were explored by means of the polarizable continuum method (PCM), while the (limited) side-chain flexibility of the compounds has been addressed by Boltzmann averaging of the computed spectral parameters over different conformational minima. Overall, the calculated shifts reproduce well the experiment results; thus, the computational procedure represents a feasible and useful complement to multidimensional NMR experiments in the assignment process.

Antitumor agents. 3. Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of new pyridoisoquinolindione and dihydrothienoquinolindione derivatives with potent cytotoxic activity.

New antiproliferative compounds, the 1-aryl-3-ethoxycarbonyl-pyrido[2,3-g]isoquinolin-5,10-diones (PIQDs, 1-7), were designed on the basis of a molecular model obtained by aligning the common quinolinquinone substructure of 5H-pyrido[3,2-a]phenoxazin-5-one (PPH) and some known anticancer agents. A Diels-Alder reaction between quinolin-5,8-dione (QD) and a 2-azadiene, formed by demolition of 2-aryl-1,3-thiazolidine ethyl esters (T compounds), was used to produce 1-7 and the isomeric 1-aryl-3-ethoxycarbonylpyrido[3,2-g]isoquinolin-5,10-diones (8-14). Two other compounds, the 3-amino-3-ethoxycarbonyldihydrothieno[2,3-g]quinolin-4,9-dione (15) and the 3-amino-3-ethoxycarbonyldihydrothieno[3,2-g]quinolin-4,9-dione (16), arising from a 1,4 Michael reaction of QD with a thiolate species formed by opening of T compounds, were recovered from the reaction mixture. The antiproliferative activity of 1-16 was evaluated against representative human liquid and solid neoplastic cell lines. The IC(50) of these compounds had median values in the range 2.00-0.01 microM, with 2-4 and 15 exhibiting significantly higher in vitro cytotoxic activity. Compound 2, also evaluated against KB subclones (KB(MDR), KB(7D), and KB(V20C)), was shown to be scarcely subject to the MDR1/P-glycoprotein drug efflux pump responsible for drug resistance. The noncovalent DNA-binding properties of PIQDs were examined using UV-vis and (1)H NMR spectroscopy experiments. Accordingly, these compounds were confirmed to have an ability to intercalate into double-stranded DNA by topoisomerase I superhelix unwinding assay. Interesting structure-activity relationships were found. Three important features seem to contribute to the cytotoxic activity of these anticancer ligands: (i) the DNA intercalating capability of the three-cyclic quinonic system, typical of this class of compounds, (ii) the position of the pendant phenyl ring that, according to the superimposition model, must occupy the same area of the corresponding benzo-fused ring A of PPH, and (iii) the effect of electron-withdrawing substituents on the phenyl ring, which can contribute improving the pi-pi stacking interactions between ligand and DNA base pairs. Besides, a mechanism of action suspected to involve topoisomerases could be hypothesized to interpret the antiproliferative activity of the thienoquinolindione 15, which can be regarded as a cyclic cysteine derivative.

Antitumor agents 4. Characterization of free radicals produced during reduction of the antitumor drug 5H-pyridophenoxazin-5-one: an EPR study.

5H-Pyridophenoxazin-5-one (PPH), a new anticancer iminoquinone, is able to inhibit a large number of lymphoblastoid and solid tumor-derived cells at submicromolar concentrations. Molecular modeling calculations indicated that this compound might intercalate into the DNA double strand. This was also supported by nuclear magnetic resonance studies. Since free radicals arising from anticancer quinonic drugs have been proposed to be key species responsible for DNA cleavage, we have aimed to intercept and identify free radicals from PPH generated under bioreductive conditions. The first and second monoelectronic reduction potentials of PPH were measured by means of cyclic voltammetry: the reduction potential of PPH is compatible with its reduction by compounds such as NADH, and suggested that reduction of PPH may play a role in its cytotoxicity. The radical anion PPH(*)(-) was detected by means of electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, and its identification was supported by DFT calculations. EPR experiments in the presence of spin traps 5,5-dimethylpyrroline N-oxide and 5-(diethoxyphosphoryl)-5-methylpyrroline N-oxide suggested the occurrence of an electron transfer between the radical anion of the drug and oxygen resulting in the formation of the superoxide anion (O(2)(*)(-)). The enthalpy of the reaction of PPH(*)(-) with O(2) was determined both in the gas phase and in solution at the B3LYP/6-31+G level using the isodensity PCM method, and the overall process in dimethyl sulfoxide was predicted to be slightly exothermic. We propose that the monoelectronic reduction of PPH in the proximity of DNA may eventually lead to radicals that could cause considerable damage to DNA, thus accounting for the high cytotoxic activity of the drug. Indeed, a comet assay (alkaline single-cell electrophoresis) showed that PPH causes free radical-induced DNA damage.

New benzo[g]isoquinoline-5,10-diones and dihydrothieno [2,3-b]naphtho-4,9-dione derivatives: synthesis and biological evaluation as potential antitumoral agents.

Novel antitumoral agents with quinonic structure were synthesized and evaluated for their in vitro cytotoxic activities. This study examines the cytotoxic activities of several aryl benzo[g]isoquinoline-5,10-dione derivatives and a number of aminoacyl dihydrothieno[2,3-b]naphtho-4,9-dione (DTNQ) derivatives containing amino acids in position 3 of the ring system. Compound 6 showed remarkable cytotoxic activity at submicromolar concentration not only against several human leukaemia and solid tumour cell lines, but also toward sensitive and resistant human cell lines.

Antitumor agents. 1. Synthesis, biological evaluation, and molecular modeling of 5H-pyrido[3,2-a]phenoxazin-5-one, a compound with potent antiproliferative activity.

The iminoquinone is an important moiety of a large number of antineoplastic drugs and plays a significant role in the nucleus of actinomycins, powerful, highly toxic, natural antibiotics that target DNA as intercalating agents. A series of polycyclic iminoquinonic compounds, 2-amino-3H-phenoxazin-3-one (1), 2-amino-1,9-diacetyl-3H-phenoxazin-3-one (2), 2-acetylamino-3H-phenoxazin-3-one (3), 3H-phenoxazin-3-one (4), 5H-pyrido[3,2-a]phenoxazin-5-one (5), and 5H-pyrido[3,2-a]phenothiazin-5-one (6), strictly related to the actinomycin chromophore, were synthesized for developing new anticancer intercalating drugs. The antiproliferative activity of these compounds, evaluated against representative human liquid and solid neoplastic cell lines, showed that 5 and its isoster 6 were the most active compounds inhibiting cell proliferation in a submicromolar range. Compound 5 was also evaluated against KB subclones (KBMDR, KB7D, and KBV20C), which overexpress the MDR1/P-glycoprotein drug efflux pump responsible for drug resistance. All the above KB subclones did not show altered sensitivity to the antiproliferative activity of 5. UV-vis and (1)H NMR spectroscopy experiments support the phenoxazinone 5/DNA binding. Molecular mechanics methods were used to build a three-dimensional model of the 5/[d(GAAGCTTC)]2 complex. Electrostatic interactions between the hydrogen of the positively charged pyridine nitrogen of 5 and the negatively charged oxygen atoms (O4' and O5') of the cytosine C5 residue together with stacking forces contribute to the high antiproliferative activity. The metal(II)-assisted synthesis procedure of 5 is described, and the formation mechanism is proposed.

Antitumor agents. 2. Synthesis, structure-activity relationships, and biological evaluation of substituted 5H-pyridophenoxazin-5-ones with potent antiproliferative activity.

New antiproliferative compounds, 5H-pyrido[3,2-a]phenoxazin-5-ones (1-10), 5H-benzophenoxazin-5-one (11), 5H-pyrido[2,3-a]phenoxazin-5-one (12), 5H-pyrido[3,4-a]phenoxazin-5-one (13), and 5H-pyrido[4,3-a]phenoxazin-5-one (14), were synthesized and evaluated against representative human neoplastic cell lines. The excellent cytotoxic activity of these polycyclic phenoxazinones, structurally related to the actinomycin chromophore, is discussed in terms of structural changes made to rings A and D (Chart 1). Electron-withdrawing or electron-donating substituents were introduced at different positions of ring A to probe the electronic and positional effects of the substitution. A nitro group in R(2) or in R(1) increases the cytotoxic activity, whereas electron-donating methyl groups in any position lead to 10- to 100-fold decreasing of the activity. The low antiproliferative activity of benzophenoxazinone 11 and pyridophenoxazinones 13 and 14 confirms the crucial role of pyridine nitrogen in the W position of ring D in DNA binding. The unexpected high activity exhibited by 12, which has the nitrogen in the X position, could be ascribed to a different mechanism of action, which needs further investigation.