Agnieszka Skórska-Stania

From methylene blue to chloroquine: a brief review of the development of an antimalarial therapy.

Malarial treatment is widely and readily available today. However, there was a time in the not-so-distant past when malaria was a deadly disease with no known cause or cure. In this article, we trace the origins of an antimalarial therapy from the discovery of the nature of the malarial parasite through the development of chloroquine. We dedicate this article to Johann “Hans” Andersag, the scientist who developed chloroquine, on the 110th anniversary of his birth, 16 February 1902.

X-ray and molecular modelling in fragment-based design of three small quinoline scaffolds for HIV integrase inhibitors

Crystal structures of three small molecular scaffolds based on quinoline, 2-methylquinoline-5,8-dione, 5-hydroxy-quinaldine-6-carboxylic acid and 8-hydroxy-quinaldine-7-carboxylic acid, were characterised. 5-Hydroxy-quinaldine-6-carboxylic acid was co-crystallized with cobalt(II) chloride to form a model of divalent metal cation-ligand interactions for potential HIV integrase inhibitors. Molecular docking into active site of HIV IN was also performed on 1WKN PDB file. Selected ligand-protein interactions have been found specific for active compounds. Studied structures can be used as scaffolds in fragment-based design of new potent drugs.

Ruthenium(II) piano stool coordination compounds with aminomethylphosphanes: Synthesis, characterisation and preliminary biological study in vitro

Reaction of {[Ru(η6-p-cymene)Cl]2(μ-Cl)2} (1) with aminomethylphosphane derived from morpholine (P{CH2N(CH2CH2)2O}3 (A), PPh2{CH2N(CH2CH2)2O} (B)) or piperazine (P{CH2N(CH2CH2)2NCH2CH3}3 (C), PPh2{CH2N(CH2CH2)2NCH2CH3} (D)) results in four new piano stool ruthenium(II) coordination compounds: [Ru(η6-p-cymene)Cl2(A)] (2A), [Ru(η6-p-cymene)Cl2(B)] (2B), [Ru(η6-p-cymene)Cl2(C)] (2C) and [Ru(η6-p-cymene)Cl2(D)] (2D). Every complex was fully characterized using spectroscopic methods (1H, 13C{1H}, 31P{1H} NMR and ESI-MS), elemental analysis, X-ray single crystal diffraction and DFT calculations. Preliminary studies of in vitro cytotoxicity on the A549 (human lung adenocarcinoma) and MCF7 (human breast adenocarcinoma) cell lines revealed 2A-2D activity in the same order of magnitude as in the case of cisplatin. Additionally, the study confirmed the ability of 2A-2D to interact with DNA helix and transferrin.

Unexpected formation of [Ru(η5-C5H5)(PH{CH2N(CH2CH2)2O}2)(PPh3)2]BF4 – the first “piano-stool” ruthenium complex bearing a secondary aminomethylphosphane ligand

In this paper we report the reaction of [Ru(η5-C5H5)Cl(PPh3)2] with P{CH2N(CH2CH2)2O}3 in the presence of NaBF4, in which, apart from the Cl− substitution, an unexpected P–C bond cleavage in the tertiary phosphane is observed. It results in the formation of [Ru(η5-C5H5)(PH{CH2N(CH2CH2)2O}2)(PPh3)2]BF4 (1) – the first “piano-stool” ruthenium complex with a secondary aminomethylphosphane ligand.

The Role of Solvent in Hydrogen Bonding Pattern of Ellagic Acid Crystals

To study the solvatomorphism in ellagic acid two crystal structures have been determined with the use of X-ray diffraction method. The obtained single crystals of dimethyl sulfoxide solvate and of dimethylformamide solvate belong to

Polymeric micelle-mediated delivery of half-sandwich ruthenium(II) complexes with phosphanes derived from fluoroloquinolones for lung adenocarcinoma treatment

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Is it possible to guess potential drug activity from its crystal structure

P1¯ and to P21/c space groups, respectively. In both structures, the inversion centre is located in the centre of the molecule of ellagic acid, so the asymmetric units contain only half of this molecule and one molecule of the corresponding solvent. The packing of the ellagic acid molecules in the crystals of these two solvatomorphs is dominantly controlled by the molecules of solvents, which form different hydrogen bonding patterns. The molecules of ellagic acid are planar and connected by hydrogen bonds via molecules of solvent, giving the rise to chains throughout the crystal. This work has concentrated on the strong O–H···O hydrogen bonds and weak C–H···O interactions.Graphical AbstractTo study the solvatomorphism in ellagic acid and its influence on intermolecular hydrogen bonding, two crystal structures have been determined using small molecule, single crystal with X-ray diffraction. Intermolecular hydrogen bonding for EA_DMSO show ring R42(14), whereas for EA_DMF, R84(36). Dashed lines indicate hydrogen bonds.

New ruthenium(II) coordination compounds possessing bidentate aminomethylphosphane ligands: synthesis, characterization and preliminary biological study in vitro

The rhodanine derivatives show various pharmacological activities. Rhodanine-3-carboxylic acids can be used as the substrates in various synthesis of compounds containing rhodanine-3-carboxyalkyl moiety. In this paper new crystal structures of rhodanine-3-acetic acid and its two homologues, i.e. rhodanine-3-propionic acid and rhodanine-3-butyric acid, are reported. The relationship between the length of the alkyl chain and the geometry of these molecules was studied. The crystal network is dominated by strong hydrogen bonds O–H···O formed by the carboxyl groups. Additionally, weak C–H···O and C–H···S contacts are observed.Graphical AbstractTo study the difference in intermolecular interactions of rhodanine-3-carboxylic acid, three crystal structures were determined by X-ray diffraction method. The crystal network in all studied structures is built of homosynthons and stabilized by weak C–H···O and C–H···S contacts.