In Silico Approach: Anti-Tuberculosis Activity of Caespitate in the H37Rv Strain.

Tuberculosis is a highly lethal bacterial disease worldwide caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). Caespitate is a phytochemical isolated from Helichrysum caespititium, a plant used in African traditional medicine that shows anti-tubercular activity, but its mode of action remains unknown. It is suggested that there are four potential targets in Mtb, specifically in the H37Rv strain: InhA, MabA, and UGM, enzymes involved in the formation of Mtb's cell wall, and PanK, which plays a role in cell growth. Two caespitate conformational structures from DFT conformational analysis in the gas phase (GC) and in solution with DMSO (CS) were selected. Molecular docking calculations, MM/GBSA analysis, and ADME parameter evaluations were performed. The docking results suggest that CS is the preferred caespitate conformation when interacting with PanK and UGM. In both cases, the two intramolecular hydrogen bonds characteristic of caespitate's molecular structure were maintained to achieve the most stable complexes. The MM/GBSA study confirmed that PanK/caespitate and UGM/caespitate were the most stable complexes. Caespitate showed favorable pharmacokinetic characteristics, suggesting rapid absorption, permeability, and high bioavailability. Additionally, it is proposed that caespitate may exhibit antibacterial and antimonial activity. This research lays the foundation for the design of anti-tuberculosis drugs from natural sources, especially by identifying potential drug targets in Mtb.

Information on Gas-Phase Diatomic Molecules from Magnetically Induced Current Densities.

Magnetically induced current densities are different for different types of chemical bonds, and may help highlight some of their characteristics and stress their main differences. The present work considers magnetically induced current densities in the bonds of diatomic molecules bonded by covalent bonds as well as the gas phase molecules of 1:1 ionic compounds, comparing the current strength values and visualizing current density maps. The results show clear-cut differences for the different types of bonds (non-polar covalent, polar covalent, and ionic), and can also be related to the extent of the covalent or ionic character of a bond. For ionic compounds, the results also show relevant differences depending on the charges of the ions and on their electron configuration (including significant effects from the presence of d electrons in the outer shell of the ions). The article presents and analyses the results in detail. It is concluded that the magnetically induced current densities contribute to the description and interpretation of chemical bonding in diatomic molecules. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.