Influence of chirality of V(V) Schiff base complexes on DNA, BSA binding and cleavage activity.

New chiral V(V) Schiff base complexes (S)-[VO(OMe)L] and (R)-[VO(OMe)L] were synthesized and characterized by microanalysis, infrared (IR), UV-Visible, Circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy and single crystal X-ray studies. The interaction of these complexes with calf thymus (CT) DNA and bovine serum albumin (BSA) protein showed chiral expression DNA/protein binding strength. The influence of chirality was also observed in cytotoxicity assay of Hep 2 cells. (R)-[VO(OMe)L] enantiomer exhibited higher binding constant (5 ± 1 × 10(5) M(-1)) as compared to (S)-[VO(OMe)L] (8 ± 1 × 10(4) M(-1)). The fluorescence quenching, thermal melting and viscosity data suggest DNA surface and/or groove binding nature of the complexes and electrophoresis studies also showed greater activity for (R)-[VO(OMe)L] in cleaving DNA and protein as against (S)-[VO(OMe)L].

In vitro cytotoxicity study of agave americana, strychnos nuxvomica and areca catechu extracts using mcf-7 cell line.

Research is focusing on the search for new types of natural chemotherapeutic agent that is plant based medicines which are proving to be excellent sources of new compounds. In present research study, an attempt was made to prove cytotoxicity activity of various parts of medicinal plants such as Agave americana, Strychnos nuxvomica and Areca catechu using MCF-7 and Vero cell line. Various parts of the medicinal plants were extracted by soxhlet apparatus using solvents likes methanol and water. By trypan blue dye exclusion method, Viability of MCF-7 and Vero cell lines were 85.50 and 81.13%, respectively. IC(50) value of methanol extract of Agave americana leaves and aqueous extract of Areca catechu fruits were found to be 545.9 & 826.1 µg/ml by SRB assay and 775.1 & 1461pg/ml by MTT assay, respectively, against MCF-7 cell line. From cytotoxicity study data by SRB and MTT assay, it revealed that methanol extract of Agave americana and aqueous extract of Areca catechu are potent cytotoxic.

Microbubble: a potential ultrasound tool in molecular imaging.

Advances in molecular biology and biochemistry have dramatically increased our understanding of disease. The molecular mechanisms are the pathogenic basis of disease is changing modern medicine. New drugs often inhibit specific key pathways. In nuclear medicine, molecular imaging agents have been used for years, but most contrast agents for MRI or CT today are unspecific. The diagnosis is based on alterations in morphology and basic physiology, all of which are late manifestations of the original molecular changes. There are only few more specific contrast agents available. Microbubbles are the one, of size of blood cells are used as contrast agents for ultrasound imaging and are particularly valuable for targeting selected tissues and for providing useful information about the efficacy of chemotherapy. The exploitation of microbubble agents can be achieved when there is a full understanding of the bubble/ultrasound interaction for microbubbles freely suspended in blood or attached to blood vessel walls. Microbubbles are promising tool for targeting chemotherapeutics, polypeptides and genetic material to its target in body.