Raffaello Pompei

Importance of the thiomorpholine introduction in new pyrrole derivatives as antimycobacterial agents analogues of BM 212

During the course of our investigations in the field of azole antimicrobial agents, we have identified BM 212, a pyrrole derivative with good in vitro activity against mycobacteria and candidae. These findings prompted us to prepare new pyrrole derivatives 1-10 in the hope of increasing the activity. The microbiological data showed interesting in vitro activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis and atypical mycobacteria.

Olive milling wastewater as a medium for growth of four Pleurotus species.

Four species ofPleurotus were adapted to grow on olive milling wastewater, and in certain conditions produced high yield of fruit bodies. Some biochemical transformations were observed in the olive milling wastewater owing to the growth ofPleurotus. In particular, the fungi actively excreted large amounts of laccase in the medium, and at the same time the concentration of phenolics and other toxic compounds significantly decreased, as revealed by HPLC analysis and toxicity tests on standard cultures of human cell lines.

New pyrrole derivatives as antimycobacterial agents analogs of BM212

During the course of our investigations in the field of azole antimicrobial agents, we have identified BM212 a pyrrole derivative with good in vitro activity against mycobacteria and candidae. These findings prompted us to prepare new pyrrole derivatives 2-6 in the hope of increasing the activity. The microbiological data showed interesting in vitro activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis and atypical mycobacteria.

Pyrrolnitrin and related pyrroles endowed with antibacterial activities against Mycobacterium tuberculosis

During development of nitroheterocycles with potential antimycobacterial activities we have tested against Mycobacterium tuberculosis a number of pyrroles strictly related to pyrrolnitrin, an antifungal antibiotic isolated from Streptomyces pyrrocinia. Some of the tested arylpyrrole derivatives and pyrrolnitrin have shown appreciable inhibiting activity against M. tuberculosis and M. avium. SAR studies well correlate antimycobacterial potency with the presence of halogens in the phenyl ring and a nitro group at position 3 of pyrrole.

Enterococcus flavescens sp. nov., a New Species of Enterococci of Clinical Origin

Four yellow-pigmented group D enterococci of uncertain taxonomic position were isolated from several humans with severe infections. The results of DNA composition, DNA-DNA hybridization, fatty acid content, and biochemical property studies demonstrated that these organisms were slightly related to other previously described yellow-pigmented enterococcal species and constitute a new species, for which we propose the name Enterococcus flavescens. The type strain of E. flavescens is strain CCM 4239 [corrected].

Antiviral activity of glycyrrhizic acid

Glycyrrhizic acid inhibits the growth of several DNA and RNA viruses in cell cultures and inactivates Herpes simplex 1 virus irreversibly.

New anti-viral drugs for the treatment of the common cold

Human Rhinovirus (HRV) is the most important aetiologic agent of common cold in adults and children. HRV is a single-stranded, positive sense RNA virus and, despite the high level of conservation among different serotypes, sequence alignment of viral protease 3C with mammalian protease reveals no homology. Thus, protease 3C is an optimal target for the development of anti-HRV agents. In the present work we investigated the design, the synthesis and the development of new potential reversible inhibitors against HRV protease 3C. Docking studies on the crystallized structure of HRV2 protease 3C led us to the design and the synthesis of a series of 3,5 disubstituted benzamides able to act as analogues of the substrate. We also developed 1,3,5 trisubstituted benzamides where aromatic substitutions on the aryl ring led us to investigate the importance of pi-pi interaction on the stabilization of protease 3C-inhibitor complex. All structures were tested for enzymatic inhibition on HRV14 protease 3C. Results highlighted the inhibitory activity of compounds 13, 14, and 20 (91%, 81%, and 85% at 10 microM, respectively), with the latter exhibiting an ID(50) (dose that inhibits 50% of the viral cytopathic effect) on HRV-14=25 microg/ml.

Extraction of Santolina insularis essential oil by supercritical carbon dioxide : influence of some process parameters and biological activity

Santolina insularis was used to obtain its essential oil by means of supercritical fluid extraction with carbon dioxide, CO2. The choice of the proper value of CO2 density is the crucial point influencing solvent power and selectivity, the main factors determining oil composition. In circuit to obtain a pure essential oil deprived of cuticular waxes, the extraction products were fractionated in two separators operated in series. A good process performance was obtained working at 90 bar and 50 °C in the extraction vessel, at 90 bar and −12 °C in the first separator and at 20 bar and 15 °C in the second separator. The extraction time proved to be another parameter that determines the composition of the essential oil extracted. Indeed, lower molecular weight and less polar compounds were more readily extracted, since the other families of compounds exhibit higher diffusion times. The oil extracted also contained small quantities of water. The water yield was measured and the possible role of water in the extraction process is discussed. A comparison with the oil obtained by hydrodistillation is also given. Finally, the cytotoxic and antimicrobial activity of the various extracts has been assayed. Copyright

Antiviral activity of new triterpenic derivatives

Twenty-seven triterpenic derivatives of glycyrrhetinic, oleanolic, ursolic and maslinic acid were tested for antiviral and cytotoxic properties. Twelve of them showed apparent antiviral activity against at least one of the tested viruses. The most active compounds were PAS-T45 and 48 which exerted a protection index of 4 on vaccinia virus.

Production of lysozyme‐enriched biomass from cheese industry by‐products

Cheese whey and cottage cheese whey are by‐products of the milk and cheese industry, resulting from the production of cheese and cottage cheese (ricotta) from milk. They are still rich in organic substances and cannot be discarded into the environment without proper treatment. Whey and cottage cheese whey were used as culture media for some strains of the yeast Kluyveromyces lactis, transformed with the human lysozyme gene. It was found that the yeast strains grew well in both media and produced a considerable amount of recombinant protein. Production kinetics showed that the human lysozyme was produced in a greater amount within 36 h of fermentation (125 μg ml−1vs 25 μg ml−1 in the control) than in the synthetic commercial media used for strain preparation and characterization. The recombinant protein produced was actually shown to be the human lysozyme, using renaturing SDS‐PAGE and Western blot techniques. While producing recombinant protein, the Kluyveromyces strain cleared the cottage cheese whey of most organic substances and produced a considerable amount (almost 3%) of lysozyme‐enriched useful biomass.