Kanchugarakoppal S. Rangappa

Spectrophotometric methods for the determination of certain catecholamine derivatives in pharmaceutical preparations

Two simple, rapid and sensitive spectrophotometric methods for the determination of catecholamine derivatives (pyrocatechol, dopamine, levodopa and methyldopa) are developed. The first method involves the oxidation of o-dihydroxybenzene derivatives by N-bromosuccinimide followed by oxidative coupling with isoniazid leading to the formation of a red-coloured products of maximum absorbance (lambda(max)=480-490 nm). The second method is based on the formation of green to blue complex (lambda(max)=635-660 nm) between o- dihydroxybenzene derivatives and sodium nitroprusside in the presence of hydroxylamine hydrochloride. All measurements of the two procedures are carried out in an alkaline medium at room temperature. The two methods are successfully applied for the determination of dopamine hydrochloride, levodopa and methyldopa in injections and tablets of pharmaceutical preparation. The common excipients used as additives in pharmaceuticals do not interfere in the proposed methods. The reliability of these methods are established by parallel determination with the reported and official methods.

Extractive spectrophotometric methods for the assay of sildenafil citrate (Viagra) in pure form and in pharmaceutical formulations

Two simple and sensitive extractive spectrophotometric methods for the determination of sildenafil citrate (SC) are proposed. The methods are based on the formation of ion-association complexes of sildenafil citrate with bromocresol green (BCG, method A) and with chromoxane cyanine R (CCR, method B) in aqueous acidic buffer. The complex species, extractable to chloroform phase, were quantitatively measured at 415 and 460 nm for methods A and B, respectively. Beers law was obeyed in the SC concentration range 1.25-25 mug ml(-1) with a limit of detection 0.16 mug ml(-1) and 1.5-60 mug ml(-1) with a limit of detection 0.18 mug ml(-1), respectively, for methods A and B. The methods have been successfully applied to the analysis of bulk drug and its tablets. No interference was observed from common pharmaceutical adjuvants.

Stability indicating RP-LC determination of sildenafil citrate (Viagra) in pure form and in pharmaceutical samples

A simple, precise, sensitive and stability-indicating reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatographic (RP-HPLC) method has been developed for the quantitation of sildenafil citrate (SC) in pure form and its pharmaceutical formulations. Method employs water and acetonitrile (48:52 v/v) as mobile phase with flow rate of 1 ml min(-1), LiChrospher C18-5 microm (25 x 0.46 cm) column and UV detection set at 245 nm. The internal standard method using piroxicam (PX) as the internal standard is used. The linear dynamic range of SC was found to be 0.05-7.5 microg ml(-1). The proposed method is successfully employed for the determination of SC in the tablets. The excipients present in the formulations do not interfere with the assay procedure. Analytical parameters were calculated and full statistical evaluation is included.

Development of a novel azaspirane that targets the Janus kinase-signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) pathway in hepatocellular carcinoma in vitro and in vivo.

Background: Constitutive activation of STAT3 is associated with the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and abrogation of STAT3 signaling is a potential target for HCC treatment. Results: A novel azaspirane modulates the JAK-STAT pathway in HCC. Conclusion: The lead compound induces apoptosis by down-regulating STAT3 signaling. Significance: This investigation reports a novel inhibitor of the JAK-STAT pathway with the potential to target various cancers. Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) is a transcription factor that regulates genes involved in cell growth, proliferation, and survival, and given its association with many types of cancers, it has recently emerged as a promising target for therapy. In this work, we present the synthesis of N-substituted azaspirane derivatives and their biological evaluation against hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells (IC50 = 7.3 μm), thereby identifying 2-(1-(4-(2-cyanophenyl)1-benzyl-1H-indol-3-yl)-5-(4-methoxy-phenyl)-1-oxa-3-azaspiro(5,5) undecane (CIMO) as a potent inhibitor of the JAK-STAT pathway with selectivity over normal LO2 cells (IC50 > 100 μm). The lead compound, CIMO, suppresses proliferation of HCC cells and achieves this effect by reducing both constitutive and inducible phosphorylation of JAK1, JAK2, and STAT3. Interestingly, CIMO displayed inhibition of Tyr-705 phosphorylation, which is required for nuclear translocation of STAT3, but it has no effect on Ser-727 phosphorylation. CIMO accumulates cancer cells in the sub-G1 phase and decreases STAT3 in the nucleus and thereby causes down-regulation of genes regulated via STAT3. Suppression of STAT3 phosphorylation by CIMO and knockdown of STAT3 mRNA using siRNA transfection displayed a similar effect on the viability of HCC cells. Furthermore, CIMO significantly decreased the tumor development in an orthotopic HCC mouse model through the modulation of phospho-STAT3, Ki-67, and cleaved caspase-3 in tumor tissues. Thus, CIMO represents a chemically novel and biologically in vitro and in vivo validated compound, which targets the JAK-STAT pathway as a potential cancer treatment.

Cyclocondensation of arylhydrazines with 1,3-bis(het)arylmonothio-1,3-diketones and 1,3-bis(het)aryl-3-(methylthio)-2-propenones: synthesis of 1-aryl-3,5-bis(het)arylpyrazoles with complementary regioselectivity.

Two efficient highly regioselective routes for the synthesis of unsymmetrically substituted 1-aryl-3,5-bis(het)arylpyrazoles with complementary regioselectivity starting from active methylene ketones have been reported. In the first protocol, the newly synthesized 1,3-bis(het)aryl-monothio-1,3-diketone precursors (prepared by condensation of active methylene ketones with het(aryl) dithioesters in the presence of sodium hydride) were reacted with arylhydrazines in refluxing ethanol under neutral conditions, furnishing 1-aryl-3,5-bis(het)arylpyrazoles 7, in which the het(aryl) moiety attached to the thiocarbonyl group of monothio-1,3-diketones is installed at the 3-position. In the second method, the corresponding 3-(methylthio)-1,3-bis(het)aryl-2-propenones (prepared in situ by base-induced alkylation of 1,3-monothiodiketones) were condensed with arylhydrazines in the presence of potassium tert-butoxide in refluxing tert-butyl alcohol, yielding 1-aryl-3,5-bis(het)arylpyrazoles 9 with complementary regioselectivity (method A). The efficiency of this protocol was further improved by developing a one-pot, three-component procedure for the synthesis of pyrazoles 9, directly from active methylene ketones, by reacting in situ generated 3-(methylthio)-1,3-bis(het)aryl-2-propenones with arylhydrazines in the presence of sodium hydride (instead of potassium tert-butoxide as base). The structures and regiochemistry of newly synthesized pyrazoles were confirmed from their spectral and analytical data along with X-ray crystallographic data of three pairs of regioisomers.

Synthesis and in vitro antiproliferative activity of novel 1-benzhydrylpiperazine derivatives against human cancer cell lines

In order to explore the antiproliferative effect associated with the piperazine framework, several 1-benzhydrylpiperazine derivatives 8(a-d), 9(a-d) and 10(a-h) were synthesized. Variation in the functional group at N-terminal of the piperazine led to three sets of compounds, bearing the sulfonyl, amide and thiourea, respectively. Their chemical structures were confirmed by (1)H NMR, LCMS, IR and elemental analysis. The antiproliferative effect of the compounds were evaluated in vitro using the MTT colorimetric method against one normal cell line (NF-103 skin fibroblast cells) and four human cancer cell lines (MCF-7 breast carcinoma cell line, HepG-2 hepatocellular carcinoma cell line, HeLa cervix carcinoma cell line and HT-29 colon carcinoma cell line) for the time period of 24 h. Among the series, four compounds exhibited interesting growth inhibitory effects against all four cell lines.

Spectrophotometric method for the determination of paracetamol and phenacetin

A rapid, sensitive and simple spectrophotometric method is proposed for the determination of hydrolysis products of paracetamol (PRL) and phenacetin (PHN) with sodium 1,2-naphthoquinone-4-sulphonate and cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTA) in alkaline medium. The absorbances are measured at 570 and 500 nm and the molar absorptivities found to be 1.118 x 10(4) and 4.54 x 10(3) l mol-1 cm-1 for PRL and PHN, respectively. The coloured species conforms to Beers law over the range 1-20 micrograms ml-1 for PRL and 2-24 micrograms ml-1 of PHN. The sensitivity is enhanced by the addition of CTA. The method is successfully employed for determination of PRL or PHN in various pharmaceutical preparations and laboratory made tablets and results have been statistically compared with those obtained by the official method.

Synthesis of 1,2-benzisoxazole tethered 1,2,3-triazoles that exhibit anticancer activity in acute myeloid leukemia cell lines by inhibiting histone deacetylases, and inducing p21 and tubulin acetylation

1,2,3-Triazole-based heterocycles have previously been shown to possess significant anticancer activity in various tumor models. In the present study, we attached a 1,2,3-triazole moiety to the third position of a 1,2-benzisoxazole heterocycle via copper(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) with various alkynes and established for the title compounds significant antiproliferative effect against human acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells. Among the tested compounds, 3-(4-(4-phenoxyphenyl)-1H-1,2,3-triazol-1-yl)benzo[d]isoxazole (PTB) was found to be the most potent antiproliferative agent with an IC50 of 2 μM against MV4-11 cells using MTT assay. Notably, PTB induced cytotoxicity in MOLM13, MOLM14 and MV4-11 cells with selectivity over normal bone marrow cells (C57BL/6). Furthermore, PTB was found to induce cytotoxicity by increasing apoptosis of AML cells (MOLM13, MOLM14 and MV4-11) as well as sub-G1 cell population and apoptotic cells at submicromolar concentrations, as shown by flow cytometry and Annexin-V staining, respectively. On the protein level we suggested histone deacetylases (HDACs) as the potential protein target of those compounds in silico, and the predicted target was next experimentally validated by measuring the variations in the levels of p21, cyclin D and acetylation of histone H3 and tubulin. Molecular docking analysis of the title compounds with the second deacetylase domain of HDAC6 displayed high degree of shape complementarity to the binding site of the enzyme, forming multiple molecular interactions in the hydrophobic region as well as a hydrogen bond to the phenol side-chain of Tyr-782. Thus, 1,2,3-triazole derivatives appear to represent a class of novel, biologically active ligands against histone deacetylases which deserve to be further evaluated in their applications in the cancer field.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel 1-(4-methoxyphenethyl)-1H-benzimidazole-5-carboxylic acid derivatives and their precursors as antileukemic agents

We report here the synthesis and preliminary evaluation of novel 1-(4-methoxyphenethyl)-1H-benzimidazole-5-carboxylic acid derivatives 6(a-k) and their precursors 5(a-k) as potential chemotherapeutic agents. In each case, the structures of the compounds were determined by FTIR, (1)H NMR and mass spectroscopy. Among the synthesized molecules, methyl 1-(4-methoxyphenethyl)-2-(4-fluoro-3-nitrophenyl)-1H-benzimidazole-5-carboxylate (5a) induced maximum cell death in leukemic cells with an IC(50) value of 3 microM. Using FACS analysis we show that the compound 5a induces S/G2 cell cycle arrest, which was further supported by the observed down regulation of CDK2, Cyclin B1 and PCNA. The observed downregulation of proapoptotic proteins, upregulation of antiapoptotic proteins, cleavage of PARP and elevated levels of DNA strand breaks indicated the activation of apoptosis by 5a. These results suggest that 5a could be a potent anti-leukemic agent.

Novel Synthetic Biscoumarins Target Tumor Necrosis Factor-α in Hepatocellular Carcinoma In Vitro and In Vivo

Background: TNF-α-induced NF-κB pathway is associated with the progression of several cancers and abrogation of TNF signaling a potential target for cancer treatment. Results: Novel biscoumarin inhibits TNF signaling in vitro and in vivo in IBD model. Conclusion: The lead compound interrupts the trimeric structure of TNF to achieve this effect. Significance: This study introduces a novel TNF inhibitor with the potential to target pro-inflammatory diseases. TNF is a pleotropic cytokine known to be involved in the progression of several pro-inflammatory disorders. Many therapeutic agents have been designed to counteract the effect of TNF in rheumatoid arthritis as well as a number of cancers. In the present study we have synthesized and evaluated the anti-cancer activity of novel biscoumarins in vitro and in vivo. Among new compounds, BIHC was found to be the most cytotoxic agent against the HepG2 cell line while exhibiting less toxicity toward normal hepatocytes. Furthermore, BIHC inhibited the proliferation of various hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Subsequently, using in silico target prediction, BIHC was predicted as a TNF blocker. Experimental validation was able to confirm this hypothesis, where BIHC could significantly inhibit the recombinant mouse TNF-α binding to its antibody with an IC50 of 16.5 μm. Furthermore, in silico docking suggested a binding mode of BIHC similar to a ligand known to disrupt the native, trimeric structure of TNF, and also validated with molecular dynamics simulations. Moreover, we have demonstrated the down-regulation of p65 phosphorylation and other NF-κB-regulated gene products upon BIHC treatment, and on the phenotypic level the compound shows inhibition of CXCL12-induced invasion of HepG2 cells. Also, we demonstrate that BIHC inhibits infiltration of macrophages to the peritoneal cavity and suppresses the activity of TNF-α in vivo in mice primed with thioglycollate broth and lipopolysaccharide. We comprehensively validated the TNF-α inhibitory efficacy of BIHC in an inflammatory bowel disease mice model.