Bioorganic synthesis, characterization and evaluation of a natural phenolic lipid.

The first synthesis of a phenolic natural monoacylglycerol (1- [11-(ferulyloxy) undecanoyl)] glycerol) was carried out by bioorganic synthesis starting from ferulic acid. The synthetic route of the target lipidic compound was designed involving a chemo-enzymatic approach using immobilized Candida antarctica lipase as biocatalyst in two of the steps conducted in organic medium. The prepared lipidic compound was characterized by using spectral data and evaluated for antimicrobial, antioxidant and cytotoxic studies to examine its potential. The synthesized compound showed moderate antimicrobial activity and showed very good antioxidant activity in DPPH radical scavenging assay and also in oxidation inhibition in soybean oil by differential scanning calorimetry. The cytotoxic studies of the synthetic lipid showed promising activity against A549 and HeLa cancer cell lines with IC50 values of 9.102 and 9.886 µM respectively. The prepared compound can be useful in designing novel phenolic lipids with potential applications in cosmetic and biomedical fields.

Influence of flour type on physico-chemical characteristics during deep frying.

The study focuses on understanding the influence of nutrients on frying oil degradation as well as its role in oil uptake by the fried substrate. Raw substrates were prepared taking refined wheat flour (rich in carbohydrate), soy flour (rich in protein) and gram flour (with both in a definite proportion) which were subjected to frying in sunflower oil at 185-200 °C. Analysis of the fried oil, substrate and fried product was carried out. Increase in acid value with respect to the composition of the flour was not significant. Higher rate of oxidation and peroxide value were observed in the oil used for Gram flour snacks, which could be due to significant amounts of sodium and potassium salts. Fried oil with soy flour based snack showed higher total polar material% which could be due to accelerated oxidation. Oil absorption was promoted by starch and gluten and controlled by protein and insoluble fiber. Oil absorbed by refined-wheat flour and soy flour based snack were 30% and 9.33%. Gram flour-based snack absorbed 4.52% oil with superior oil quality comparatively.

Synthesis and evaluation of anti-oxidant and cytotoxic activities of novel 10-undecenoic acid methyl ester based lipoconjugates of phenolic acids.

The synthesis of five novel methyl 10-undecenoate-based lipoconjugates of phenolic acids from undecenoic acid was carried out. Undecenoic acid was methylated to methyl 10-undecenoate which was subjected to a thiol-ene reaction with cysteamine hydrochloride. Further amidation of the amine was carried out with different phenolic acids such as caffeic, ferulic, sinapic, coumaric and cinnamic acid. All synthesized compounds were fully characterized and their structures were confirmed by spectral data. The anti-oxidant activity of the synthesized lipoconjugates of phenolic acids was studied by the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay and also by the inhibition of linoleic acid oxidation in micellar medium by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The prepared compounds were also screened for their cytotoxic activity against five cell lines. It was observed that the lipoconjugates of caffeic acid, sinapic acid, ferulic acid, and coumaric acid displayed anticancer and anti-oxidant properties. The anticancer properties of these derivatives have been assessed by their IC50 inhibitory values in the proliferation of MDA-MB231, SKOV3, MCF7, DU 145 and HepG2 cancer cell lines.

An anti-oxidant, α-lipoic acid conjugated oleoyl-sn-phosphatidylcholineas a helper lipid in cationic liposomal formulations.

Development of safe non-viral carrier systems for efficient intra-cellular delivery of drugs and genes hold promise in the area of translational research. Liposome based delivery systems have emerged as one of the attractive strategies for efficient delivery of drugs and nucleic acids. To this end, number of investigations was carried on liposomal formulations using lipids for achieving higher efficiency in transfection with lower cytotoxicities. In our efforts to develop safer and efficient liposomal delivery systems, we synthesized a novel anti-oxidant lipid, α-lipoyl, oleyl-sn-phosphatidylcholine (LOPC) and used as a helper lipid in combination with a cationic amphiphile, Di-Stearyl Dihydroxy Ethyl Ammonium Chloride (DSDEAC) and 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC) at varying concentrations of LOPC. DNA binding properties of the liposomal formulations (DS, DS LA1, DS LA2 and DS LA3) revealed that increasing the percentage of single aliphatic chain lipid LOPC, did not affect the DNA binding properties. But, transfection profiles of these liposomal formulations in 3 different cell lines (HeLa, HEK 293 and MCF7) showed difference in their efficacies. Results showed that optimal percentage of LOPC i.e. 25% in DSDEAC and DOPC at 1:1 molar ratio (DS LA1) enhanced transfection as compared to DSDEAC:DOPC alone. The endosomal escape studies with NBD labelled lysotracker and Rhodamine labelled liposomal formulations revealed that DS LA1 and DS LA2 facilitated the release of genetic cargo with a better efficiency than their counter parts. Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), a key modulator of necroptosis were lowered with the treatment of DS LA1 than other liposomal formulations. Here in, we present a novel liposomal formulation using DSDEAC and DOPC at 1:1 molar ratio doped with 25-50% (mole ratio) LOPC as an efficient delivery system for enhanced transfection with quenching of ROS levels compared to formulations without LOPC.

Synthesis and in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial studies of novel structured phosphatidylcholines with phenolic acids.

Novel phenoylated phosphatidylcholines were synthesized from 1,2-dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine/egg 1,2-diacyl phosphatidylcholine and phenolic acids such as ferulic, sinapic, vanillic and syringic acids. The structures of phenoylated phosphatidylcholines were confirmed by spectral analysis. 2-acyl-1-lyso phosphatidylcholine was synthesized from phosphatidylcholine via regioselective enzymatic hydrolysis and was reacted with hydroxyl protected phenolic acids to produce corresponding phenoylated phosphatidylcholines in 48-56% yields. Deprotection of protected phenoylated phosphatidylcholines resulted in phenoylated phosphatidylcholines in 87-94% yields. The prepared compounds were evaluated for their preliminary in vitro antimicrobial and antioxidant activities. Among the active derivatives, compound 1-(4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxy) cinnamoyl-2-acyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine exhibited excellent antioxidant activity with EC50 value of 16.43µg/mL. Compounds 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxy) cinnamoyl-2-acyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine and 1-(4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxy) cinnamoyl-2-palmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine exhibited good antioxidant activity with EC50 values of 36.05 and 33.35µg/mL respectively. Compound 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxy) cinnamoyl-2-palmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine exhibited good antibacterial activity against Klebsiella planticola with MIC of 15.6µg/mL and compound 1-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxy) benzoyl-2-acyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine exhibited good antifungal activity against Candida albicans with MIC of 15.6µg/mL.

Synthesis, characterization, antimicrobial and biofilm inhibitory studies of new esterquats.

Novel esterquats (monoesterquats and diesterquats) were synthesized from 11-bromo undecanoic acid (11-BUA) and different alkyl amines. The prepared compounds were characterized by FT-IR, (1)H NMR, (13)C NMR and mass spectral analysis. 11-BUA was converted into methyl 11-bromo undecanoate which was further converted into amine ester (amine monoester and diester) by reacting with different aliphatic amines (hexyl, dodecyl, octadecyl, dioctyl and dicyclohexyl amine). Finally, the obtained amine esters were converted into esterquats (monoesterquat and diesterquat) by reacting with methyl iodide followed by ion exchange to afford chloride counter ion esterquats (5a-h). The synthesized esterquat products were studied for their antimicrobial and biofilm inhibitory activities. Among all the compounds, amine ester 3a and esterquat 5d showed potent antimicrobial activity towards pathogenic Gram-positive bacterial strains with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values in the range of 3.9-15.6 µg mL(-1) and 1.9-7.8 µg mL(-1), respectively. The esterquat 5d also showed promising antifungal activity against Candida albicans MTCC 3017, Candida albicans MTCC 4748 and Candida aaseri MTCC 1962 strains with MIC value of 7.8 µg mL(-1) which was identical to standard Miconazole. The compounds which exhibited antimicrobial activity were also effective in anti-biofilm activity and it was found that compound 5d exhibited excellent biofilm inhibitory activity with IC50 value of 0.9 µg mL(-1) against Staphylococcus aureus MLS16 MTCC 2940.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel lipoamino acid derivatives.

Seven novel lipoamino acid conjugates were synthesized from methyl oleate and amino acids. Methyl oleate was grafted to different amino acids using thioglycolic acid as a spacer group. Seven derivatives (3a-g) were prepared and characterized by spectral data (NMR, IR and MS spectral studies). All the derivatives were studied for their antimicrobial, anti-biofilm and anticancer activities. Among all the derivatives, it was found that compound 3b was the most potent antibacterial compound which showed good activity against four Gram positive bacterial strains and also exhibited excellent antifungal activity against a fungal strain. In the anti-biofilm assay, compound 3b showed promising activity with IC50 value of 2.8µM against Bacillus subtilis MTCC 121. All the compounds showed anticancer activities with 3c showing promising anticancer activity (IC50=15.3-22.4µM) against the four cell lines tested.

Study on Synthesis, Characterization and Antiproliferative Activity of Novel Diisopropylphenyl Esters of Selected Fatty Acids.

The present study describes the synthesis, characterization and evaluation of antiproliferative activity of novel diisopropylphenyl esters of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), valproic acid (VA), butyric acid (BA) and 2-ethylhexanoic acid (2-EHA). These esters were chemically synthesized by the esterification of fatty acids with 2,6-diisopropylphenol and 2,4-diisopropylphenol (propofol). The structure of new conjugates viz. propofol-(alpha-linolenic acid) (2,6P-ALA and 2,4P-ALA), propofol-valproic acid (2,6P-VA and 2,4P-VA), propofol-butyric acid (2,6P-BA and 2,4P-BA) and propofol-(2-ethylhexanoic acid) (2,6P2-EHA and 2,4P-2-EHA) were characterized by FT-IR, NMR ((1)H, (13)C) and mass spectral data. The synthesized conjugates having more lipophilic character were tested for antiproliferative in vitro studies on A549, MDA-MB-231, HeLa, Mia-Pa-Ca and HePG2 cancer cell lines. All the conjugates showed specific growth inhibition on studied cancer cell lines. Among the synthesized esters, the conjugates synthesized from BA, VA and 2-EHA exhibited prominent growth inhibition against A549, HeLa, Mia-Pa-Ca and HePG2 cancer cell lines. The preliminary results suggest that the entire novel conjugates possess antiproliferative properties that reduce the proliferation of cancer cells in vitro.

Stage-Specific Fatty Acid Fluxes Play a Regulatory Role in Glycerolipid Metabolism during Seed Development in Jatropha curcas L.

The present study describes the changes in lipid profile as well as fatty acid fluxes during seed development in Jatropha curcas L. Endosperm from 34, 37, and 40 days after anthesis (DAA), incubated with [(14)C]acetate, showed significant synthesis of phosphatidylcholine (PC) at seed maturation. The fatty acid methyl ester profile showed PC from 34 DAA was rich in palmitic acid (16:0), whereas PC from 37 and 40 DAA was rich in oleic acid (18:1n-9). Molecular species analysis of diacylglycerol (DAG) indicated DAG (16:0/18:2n-6) was in abundance at 34 DAA, whereas DAG (18:1n-9/18:2n-6) was significantly high at 40 DAA. Triacylglycerol (TAG) analysis revealed TAG (16:0/18:2n-6/16:0) was abundant at 34 DAA, whereas TAG (18:1n-9/18:2n-6/18:1n-9) formed the majority at 40 DAA. Expression of two types of diacylglycerol acyltransferases varied with seed maturation. These data demonstrate stage-specific distinct pools of PC and DAG synthesis during storage TAG accumulation in Jatropha seed.

Lipase catalyzed interesterification of rice bran oil with hydrogenated cottonseed oil to produce trans free fat.

Lipase catalyzed interesterification of rice bran oil (RBO) with hydrogenated cottonseed oil (HCSO) was carried out for producing a low trans free fat. The interesterification reaction was performed by varying parameters such as weight proportions of RBO and HCSO, reaction temperatures, time period and lipase concentration. Both non specific and specific lipases namely Novozym 435 and Lipozyme TL IM were employed for this study. Based on the data generated, the optimum reaction conditions were found to be: weight proportion of RBO and HCSO, 80:20; lipase concentration, 5 % (w/w) of substrates; reaction temperature, 60 °C; reaction time, 4 h for Lipozyme TL IM and 5 h for Novozym 435. The degree of interesterification, calculated based on the results of solid fat characteristics was used for comparing the catalytic activity of Novozym 435 and Lipozyme TL IM. It was observed that the degree of interesterification (DI) reached a near 100 % at the 4th hour for reaction employing Lipozyme TL IM with a rate constant of 0.191 h(-1) while Novozym 435 catalyzed reaction reached a near 100 % degree of interesterification at the 5th hour with a rate constant of 0.187 h(-1), suggesting that Lipozyme TL IM has a faster catalytic activity.

Synthesis and Characterization of a Novel Phenolic Lipid for Use as Potential Lipophilic Antioxidant and as a Prodrug of Butyric Acid.

Ferulic acid was modified to produce a novel phenolipid containing butyl chains. Ferulic acid was esterified with butanol to produce butyl ferulate which was further dihydroxylated followed by esterification with butyric anhydride to produce the phenolipid containing butyric acid. IR, NMR and MS techniques confirmed the structure of the synthesized structured lipophilic phenolic compound. The synthesized compound was tested for in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. The produced phenolipid showed moderate antioxidant activity in DPPH (2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) radical scavenging assay but in linoleic acid oxidation method, it exhibited good activity compared with the parent compound and the reference compounds. The prepared derivative could find applications as antioxidant in lipophilic systems and also as a potential prodrug of butyric acid. It also showed antibacterial effect against the four bacterial strains studied. The drug-likeness properties of the prepared molecule calculated were in the acceptable ranges according to Lipinski's rule of 5 and suggest that it has potential to cross the blood-brain barrier.

Synthesis of novel lipoamino acid conjugates of sapienic acid and evaluation of their cytotoxicity activities.

Novel lipoamino acids were prepared with the coupling of sapienic acid [(Z)-6-hexadecenoic acid] with α - amino group of amino acids and the resulting N-sapienoyl amino acids were tested for their cytotoxicity activities against four cancer based cell lines. Initially, sapienic acid was synthesized by the Wittig coupling of triphenylphosphonium bromide salt of 6-bromohexanoic acid and decanal with a Z specific reagent. The prepared sapienic acid was subsequently converted to its acid chloride which was further coupled with amino acids by the Schotten-Baumann reaction to form N-sapienoyl amino acid conjugates. Structural characterization of the prepared N-sapienoyl amino acid derivatives was done by spectral data (IR, mass spectra and NMR). These lipoamino acid derivatives were screened for in vitro cytotoxicity evaluation. Cytotoxicity evaluation against four cancer cell lines showed that N-sapienoyl isoleucine was active against three cell lines whereas other derivatives either showed activity against only one or two cell lines with very moderate activity and two derivatives were observed to be inactive against the tested cell lines.

Quantitative analysis of enzymatic fractionation of multiple substrate mixtures.

The enzymatic conversion of mixtures of multiple substrates was studied quantitatively, based on established methodology used for the enzymatic kinetic resolution of racemic mixtures, involving the use of competitive factors: ratios of specificity constants (k(cat)/K(M)) of substrate pairs. The competitive factors of the substrates were defined in relation to a reference substrate. These competitive factors were used to predict the composition of the reaction mixture as a function of the degree of conversion of the reaction. The methodology was evaluated using three different lipases to hydrolyze a model mixture of four fatty acid methyl esters and for the esterification of a mixture of the same fatty acids in free form with ethanol. In most cases, the competitive factors determined from the initial phase of the reactions predicted the product composition during the rest of the reaction very well. The slowest reacting fatty acid was erucic acid (both in free form and as methyl ester), which was thus enriched in the remaining substrate fraction, while the other fatty acids: lauric acid, palmitic acid and oleic acid were converted faster. Simulations of the compositions of reaction mixtures with different values of the competitive factors were carried out to provide an overview of what could be achieved using enzymatic enrichment. Possible applications include reactions involving homologous substrates and mixtures of multiple isomers. The analysis presented provides guidelines that can be useful in the screening and development of enzymes for enzymatic enrichment applications.

Hypocholesterolemic effects of low calorie structured lipids on rats and rabbits fed on normal and atherogenic diet.

The hypocholesterolemic effects of two low calorie structured lipids (SL1 and SL2) containing essential fatty acids, prepared by lipase catalysed interesterification of ethyl behenate respectively with sunflower and soybean oils were studied in rats and rabbits. The feeding experiment conducted on rats as well as rabbits, fed on normal and atherogenic diet containing 10% of SL1 and SL2 (experimental) and sunflower oil (control) indicated no adverse effects on growth and food intake. However, the structured lipids beneficially lowered serum and liver lipids, particularly cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglycerides and also maintains the essential fatty acid status in serum and liver. The lipid deposition observed in the arteries of rabbits fed on atherogenic diets was significantly reduced when structured lipids were included in the diet. These observations coincided with reduced levels of serum cholesterol particularly LDL cholesterol observed in experimental groups. Therefore the structured lipids, designed to have low calorific value also beneficially lower serum lipids and lipid deposition in animals fed on atherogenic diets.

Bioorganic synthesis, characterization and antioxidant activity of esters of natural phenolics and α-lipoic acid.

Chemo-enzymatic synthesis of six esters of natural phenolics and α-lipoic acid was carried to produce novel compounds with potential bioactivity. The synthetic route was mild, simple, and efficient with satisfactory yields. The synthesized compounds were screened for antioxidant activities. The prepared derivatives exhibited very good antioxidant activities as determined by DPPH radical scavenging assay and inhibition of lipid oxidation in fish oil emulsion system. Among the prepared derivatives, three compounds exhibited radical scavenging activity similar to the reference antioxidants, BHT and alpha-tocopherol in the DPPH radical scavenging assay, where as in fish oil emulsion system, two derivatives showed activity, which was similar to the reference antioxidants.

Enzymatic synthesis of lipophilic rutin and vanillyl esters from fish byproducts.

Lipase-catalyzed synthesis of lipophilic phenolic antioxidants was carried out with a concentrate of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), recovered from oil extracted from salmon ( Salmon salar ) byproduct. Vanillyl alcohol and rutin were selected for the esterification reaction, and obtained esters yields were 60 and 30%, respectively. The antioxidant activities of the esters were compared with those of commercial butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and α-tocopherol using DPPH radical scavenging and thiobarbituric acid assays. In the DPPH assay, rutin esters showed better activity than vanillyl esters, and on the contrary in lipophilic medium, vanillyl esters were found to be superior to rutin esters. In bulk oil system, the antioxidant activities of rutin and vanillyl derivatives were lower than that of BHT and α-tocopherol, but in emulsion, they showed better activity than α-tocopherol. By attaching to natural phenolics, the PUFAs are protected against oxidation, and PUFA improves the hydrophobicity of the phenolic, which could enhance its function in lipid systems.

Lipase-catalyzed synthesis and characterization of 1-butanoyl-2-palmitoyl phosphatidylcholine, a potential lipidic prodrug of butyric acid.

1-Butanoyl-2-palmitoyl phosphatidylcholine was synthesized from dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) and butyric acid using a lipase catalyzed transesterification in toluene at controlled water activity. A high fatty acid concentration and low water activity were essential for the enzymatic synthesis. The transesterification resulted in 97.3% incorporation of butyric acid in the sn-1 position with negligible incorporation in the sn-2-position. In mixtures with water, a liquid crystalline phase was formed in equilibrium with a micellar phase. The prepared phospholipid derivative could find applications as a lipidic anticancer prodrug of butyric acid.