Impact of Au144 metal clusters on the structural and inhibitory mechanism of Aß42 peptide: A theoretical approach.

One of the main causes for Alzheimer disease is the abnormal self-assembly of the amyloid-beta (Aß) peptide, which in turn forms a toxic ß-rich aggregation. A recent study suggests that gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) can inhibit the Aß aggregation. Nevertheless, the effects of AuNPs on Aß peptide system are still ambiguous and needs exploration that is more detailed. Molecular dynamics simulations have been carried out to investigate the aggregation mechanism of Aß42 peptide for 500 ns. During simulation, C-terminus regions of Met 35-Ala42 residues exhibits ß-sheet conformations. Meanwhile, the Au144MC coordination induces substantial α-helical character, both α-helix and 310-helix structure at 0-500ns, in the region of Asp1-Arg5 and Val36-Ile41 residues. The Au144MC strongly coordinates with Asp1, Ala2, Glu3, Phe4, Asp7, Tyr10 and Gln15 residues that plays the significant effects to loss the ß-sheet geometry in the N-terminal region and it converted into random α-helix, turn and bend conformation. On comparing the RMSF of the Aß42 peptide and Aß42-Au144MC complex shows that the coordination of Au144MC results in greater rigidity of the Aß42 peptide backbone regions with exemptions for the Asp1, Ala2, Glu3, Leu34, Ile41 and Ala42 residues due to the strong binding between the metal cluster and the CHC (Leu17-Ala21) region. The structural stability of the Aß42 peptide and Aß42-Au144MC complex is enhanced by the several intermolecular and intramolecular interactions and it was visibly revealed in the H-bond. From the above results, it is very evident that the Au144MC can be used as inhibitor agent for the oligomerization of Aß42.

In silico studies of the inhibition mechanism of dengue with papain.

Dengue virus is becoming a major global disease; the envelope protein is the major target for vaccine development against Dengue. Nowadays, the attention has focused on developing inhibitors based on Papain is a promising target for treating Dengue. In the present work, the theoretical studies of E-protein(Cys74-Glu79;Lys110)…Papain(Cys25, Asn175 and His159) complexes are analysed by Density Functional Theory (M06-2X/cc-pVDZ) method. Among the E-protein(Cys74-Glu79;Lys110)…Papain(Cys25, Asn175 and Hys159) complexes, E-protein(Glu76)…Papain(Cys25) complex has the highest interaction value of -352.22 kcal/mol. Moreover, the natural bond orbital analysis also supports the above results. The 100 ns Molecular Dynamics simulation reveals that, E-protein(Ala54-Ile129)…Papain(Cys25) complex had the lowest root mean square deviation value of 1 Å compared to the E-protein(Ala54-Ile129)… Papain(Asn175 & His159) complexes. The salt bridge formation between the Asp103 and Lys110 residues are the important stabilizing factor in E-protein(Ala54-Ile129)…Papain(Cys25) complex. This result can extend our knowledge of the functional behaviour of Papain and provides structural insight to target Envelope protein as forthcoming drug targets in Dengue.

The hazardous effects of the environmental toxic gases on amyloid beta-peptide aggregation: A theoretical perspective.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is one of the leading causes of dementia in elderly people. It has been well documented that the exposure to environmental toxins such as CO, CO2, SO2 and NO2 that are present in the air is considered as a hallmark for the progression of Alzheimer's disease. However, their actual mechanism by which environmental toxin triggers the aggregation of Aß42 peptide at the molecular and atomic levels remain unknown. In this study, molecular dynamics simulation was carried out to study the aggregation mechanism of the Aß42 peptide due to its interaction of toxic gas (CO, CO2, SO2 and NO2). During the 400 ns simulation, all the Aß42 interacted toxic gas (CO, CO2, SO2, and NO2) complexes have smaller Root Mean Square Deviation values when compared to the Aß42 peptide, which shows that the interaction of toxic gases (CO, CO2, SO2, and NO2) would increase the Aß42 peptide structural stability. The radius of gyration analysis also supports that Aß42 interacted CO2 and SO2 complexes have the minimum value in the range of 0.95 nm and 1.5 nm. It is accounted that the Aß42 interacted CO2 and SO2 complexes have a greater compact structure in comparison to Aß42 interacted CO and NO2 complexes. Furthermore, all the Aß42 interacted toxic gas (CO, CO2, SO2, and NO2) complexes exhibited an enhanced secondary structural probability for coil and turn regions with a reduced α-helix probability, which indicates that the interaction of toxic gases may enhance the toxicity and aggregation of Aß42.

Modeling of Si-B-N Sheets and Derivatives as a Potential Sorbent Material for the Adsorption of Li+ Ion and CO2 Gas Molecule.

In the present exploration, a few Si-B-N derivatives are derived to adsorb Li ions and CO2 gas molecules for the potential application of metal-air batteries. The newly derived structure's bond lengths are as follows: Si=Si, 2.2 Å; Si-B, 1.9 Å; Si-N, 1.7 Å; and B-N, 1.4 Å, consistent with the experimental results of relevant structures. The stability of the newly derived structures is examined by the atom-centered density propagation study by varying the temperature from 270 to 400 K, and no structural variations are observed throughout the dynamics. Li adsorption on the Si4B2 ring has the maximum binding energy of -3.9 eV, and the result is consistent with the previous results. The rings with the 2:1 silicon-boron ratio provide strong adsorption for Li atoms. The calculated maximum electromotive force of the newly derived sheets is 0.56 V with the maximum theoretical density of 783 Wh/kg. Similarly, the maximum adsorption of CO2 on the sheet is -0.106 eV, which is considerably higher than that on graphene and its derivatives. CO2 adsorption has been carried out in the presence of water molecules to investigate the change in CO2 adsorption with the moisture (water) content, and the results show no significant change in the adsorption of CO2 with moisture. However, water has a strong interaction with the maximum interaction energy of -0.72 eV. Further, to explore the potential ability of the sheets, each sheet's edges are examined as hydrogen storage expedient and the surface as an artificial photosynthesis platform. The Si4B2 ring is more favorable for the adsorption of H atom with the chemisorption of -7.138 eV. Similarly, all of the major UV-absorption spectral peaks fall between 450 and 800 nm, which shows that the sheet can be used as an artificial photosynthesis platform.

Tetranuclear Palladacycles of 3-Acetyl-7-methoxy-2 H-chromen-2-one Derived Schiff Bases: Efficient Catalysts for Suzuki-Miyaura Coupling in an Aqueous Medium.

Tetranuclear organopalladium(II) complexes 1-3 and mononuclear complex 4 have been synthesized by the complexation of 3-acetyl-7-methoxy-2 H-chromen-2-one derived Schiff bases with potassium tetrachloropalladate K2[PdCl4]. Structural confirmation for the complexes (1-3) has been achieved by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The ligands are found to bind with the palladium ion through its azomethine nitrogen, thiolate sulfur, and C4 carbon atom of the coumarin moiety subsequent to C-H activation. The monomeric nature of complex 4 was confirmed from its mass spectroscopic data. In complex 4, coordination occurred via the lactone oxygen, azomethine nitrogen, and thiolate sulfur atoms. Computational study has been used to determine the optimized molecular structures of the complexes. An explanation on the energies of their highest occupied and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital levels and their electronic spectra has also been provided on the basis of the theoretical calculations. A systematic study of the application of these complexes as catalysts in Suzuki-Miyaura coupling (SMC) has been done with different aryl halides and phenyl boronic acid in an aqueous medium. Optimization of the reaction indicated that complex 2 exhibits greater efficiency than other complexes. An appreciable yield of the coupled products was observed with the minimum use of catalyst (µmol), and the C-C coupling has been confirmed by GC/GC-MS. An interesting result of our catalyst is the coupling of four different chloroquinolines with phenyl boronic acid to afford the coupled products in good yields.

Synthesis and X-ray study of dispiro 8-nitroquinolone analogues and their cytotoxic properties against human cervical cancer HeLa cells.

A series of unique dispiro analogues containing an oxindole pyrrolidine 8-nitroquinolone hybrid has been obtained through a one-pot three-component 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of azomethine ylides generated in situ from the condensation of isatins and benzylamine with (E)-3-arylidene-2,3-dihydro-8-nitro-4-quinolones. The structures of the newly synthesized compounds were characterized by using different spectroscopic techniques and by X-ray diffraction studies of their regio- and stereochemistry. All the synthesized compounds were screened for in vitro cytotoxic activity against the human cervical cancer cell line HeLa. The compounds have exhibited potent inhibition against human cervical cancer cells and insignificant toxicity to normal cells. The compounds 6d, 6a, 6h, 6b, and 6e induced apoptosis of HeLa cells, through ROS influx. The expression levels of proteins involved in the mitochondrion-related pathways were detected, and Western blot analysis showed that apoptosis occurred via activation of caspase-3.

Coumarin based hydrazone as an ICT-based fluorescence chemosensor for the detection of Cu2+ ions and the application in HeLa cells.

We have constructed a new coumarin based fluorescence probe BENZPYR with ICT character through condensation of N, N-diethylamino-3-acetyl coumarin with 2-hydrazinobenzothiazole. The absorbance and fluorescence spectral characteristics of BENZPYR revealed that the chemosensor can specifically detect for Cu2+ ions over other different metal ions and the lowest limit of detection was found in nano molar range. The turn off sensor of BENZPYR is related to chelation enhanced quenching (CHEQ) and intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) processes were serve as excellent fluorescent detection of Cu2+ ions in DMF medium. Fluorescence microscopy experiments revealed that probe BENZPYR may have application as a fluorophore to detect the Cu2+ in living cells. The simulated DFT analysis of electronic and structural properties and also UV-vis absorption spectra are in well accordance with the experimental UV-vis absorption spectra.

D-A-D Structured Bis-acylhydrazone Exhibiting Aggregation-Induced Emission, Mechanochromic Luminescence, and Al(III) Detection.

A readily accessible D-A-D triad molecule 1 was synthesized through acylhydrazone bond formation using carefully chosen building blocks. The molecule 1 exhibits emission through charge-coupled proton transfer and enhanced emission induced through aggregation and mechanochromic luminescence. Further, it detects Al(III) selectively among other cations in an efficient manner.

Synthesis of first ever 4-quinolone-3-carboxylic acid-appended spirooxindole-pyrrolidine derivatives and their biological applications.

A series of 4-quinolone-3-carboxylic acid-containing spirooxindole-pyrrolidine derivatives was synthesized via multicomponent 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions of azomethine ylides with new (E)-4-oxo-6-(3-phenyl-acryloyl)-1,4-dihydroquinoline-3-carboxylic acids in good yields with high regioselectivity. The cycloadducts were characterized by analytical and spectral data including [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], 2D NMR and mass spectroscopy. The structure of one of the compounds (8a) was investigated theoretically by computational techniques. DFT studies support the proposed mechanism for this cycloaddition reaction. Furthermore, antibacterial activities of the new compounds were evaluated against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains. Compounds 8f, 8m and 8p showed potent inhibition activities against selected bacteria. The in vitro cytotoxicity of spirooxindole derivatives (8a-r) was evaluated against MCF-7 breast cancer cell line. Among the various compounds tested, compound 8f [Formula: see text] showed significant cytotoxic activity compared to the standard drug doxorubicin [Formula: see text].