Taís S. Macedo

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of 3-[4-(7-chloro-quinolin-4-yl)-piperazin-1-yl]-propionic acid hydrazones as antiprotozoal agents

N-Acylhydrazones derived from 7-chloro-4-piperazin-1-yl-quinoline were synthesized and biologically evaluated for blood-stage of Plasmodium falciparum and Entamoeba histolytica trophozoites. N-Acylhydrazone F12 was found to inhibit the P. falciparum growth as well as its life cycle with good selectivity, which was achieved by inhibiting hematin formation. Compound F24 showed better IC50 value than the amoebicidal drug metronidazole.

Synthesis of 4'-(2-ferrocenyl)-2,2':6'2''-terpyridine: characterization and antiprotozoal activity of Mn(II), Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II) complexes.

A terpyridine ligand Fctpy was reacted with divalent metals (Cu, Co, Mn, Ni and Zn), yielding five complexes of general formula [Metal(Fctpy)2][PF6]2. The structure of Fctpy was determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. The complexes characterized using various spectroscopic techniques suggested an octahedral geometry around the central metal ion. These complexes were screened for their antiamoebic, trypanocidal and antimalarial activities. It was found that, complexes 2 and 3 showed better IC50 values than metronidazole against HM1:IMSS strain of Entamoeba histolytica. A substantial parasitic inhibition was not observed for the trypanocidal activity. However, for the erythrocytic stage of W2 strain of Plasmodium falciparum, the complexes inhibited β-hematin formation. At the concentration of 10 μg/mL, these complexes did not display toxicity.

Conjugation of N-acylhydrazone and 1,2,4-oxadiazole leads to the identification of active antimalarial agents.

Malaria, caused by several Plasmodium species, is the major life-threatening parasitic infection worldwide. Due to the parasite resistance to quinoline based drugs, the search for antimalarial agents is necessary. Here, we report the structural design, synthesis and antiparasitic evaluation of two novel series of 1,2,4-oxadiazoles in conjugation to N-acylhydrazones, both groups recognized as privileged structures, as well as the studies on the antimalarial activity of 16 previous described analogues. By varying substituents attached to the phenyl ring, it was possible to retain, enhance or increase the antiparasitic activity in comparison to the nonsubstituted derivatives. Replacement of substituted aryl rings by ferrocenyl and cinnamyl moieties attached in the N-acylhydrazone ablated the antiparasitic response, evidencing the structural features associated with the activity. Active compounds exhibited in vitro potency similar to mefloquine, but not all inhibited β-hematin formation. Additionally, the active compounds displayed low cytotoxicity in HepG2 cells and did not cause hemolysis in uninfected erythrocytes. In Plasmodium berghei-infected mice, the compounds reduced parasitemia but exhibited limited efficacy in increasing mice survival when compared to chloroquine, suggesting that pharmacological improvement is still necessary.

Chemical composition of essential oils from Annona vepretorum Mart. and Annona squamosa L. (Annonaceae) leaves and their antimalarial and trypanocidal activities

Here, we describe the trypanocidal and antimalarial activities from essential oils extracted from Annona vepretorum (AVOE) and Annona squamosa (ASOE) (Annonaceae) leaves. The essential oils were obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and GC–flame ionization detection (GC–FID). A total of twenty-one compounds were identified in AVOE and twenty-three in ASOE. The sesquiterpenes are more abundant in the both essential oils. ASOE contained significant quantities of (E)-caryophyllene (27.4%), germacrene D (17.1%) and bicyclogermacrene (10.8%). The major compounds in AVOE were bicyclogermacrene (39.0%), spathulenol (14.0%) and α-phellandrene (11.5%). The essential oils demonstrated potent trypanocidal and antimalarial activities with values of ic50 lower than 20 μg/mL, and a strong inhibition of the proliferation of amastigotes, the clinically relevant forms of Trypanosoma cruzi. In addition, through ultrastructural studies and flow cytometry analysis with trypomastigotes of T. cruzi, we identified significant ultrastructural alterations induced by the essential oils, especially in the cell membrane and mitochondria, which ultimately results in necrotic parasite death.

Chloroquine-containing organoruthenium complexes are fast-acting multistage antimalarial agents

We report the pharmacological activity of organoruthenium complexes containing chloroquine (CQ) as a chelating ligand. The complexes displayed intraerythrocytic activity against CQ-sensitive 3D7 and CQ-resistant W2 strains of Plasmodium falciparum, with potency and selectivity indexes similar to those of CQ. Complexes displayed activity against all intraerythrocytic stages, but moderate activity against Plasmodium berghei liver stages. However, unlike CQ, organoruthenium complexes impaired gametocyte viability and exhibited fast parasiticidal activity against trophozoites for P. falciparum. This functional property results from the ability of complexes to quickly induce oxidative stress. The parasitaemia of P. berghei-infected mice was reduced by treatment with the complex. Our findings demonstrated that using chloroquine for the synthesis of organoruthenium complexes retains potency and selectivity while leading to an increase in the spectrum of action and parasite killing rate relative to CQ.

Evaluation of naphthoquinones identified the acetylated isolapachol as a potent and selective antiplasmodium agent

Abstract This study reports on the design, synthesis and antiparasitic activity of three new semi-synthetic naphthoquinones structurally related to the naturally-occurring lapachol and lapachone. Of the compounds tested, 3-(3-methylbut-1-en-1-yl)-1,4-dioxo-1,4-dihydronaphthalen-2-yl acetate (1) was the most active against Plasmodium falciparum among both natural and semi-synthetic naphthoquinones, showing potent and selective activity. Compound 1 was able to reduce the in vitro parasite burden, in vitro parasite cell cycle, as well as the blood parasitemia in Plasmodium berghei-infected mice. More importantly, infection reduction under compound 1-treatment was achieved without exhibiting mouse genotoxicity. Regarding the molecular mechanism of action, this compound inhibited the hemozoin crystal formation in P. falciparum treated cells, and this was further confirmed by observing that it inhibits the β-hematin polymerization process similarly to chloroquine. Interestingly, this compound did not affect either mitochondria structure or cause DNA fragmentation in parasite treated cells. In conclusion, we identified a semi-synthetic antimalarial naphthoquinone closely related to isolapachol, which had stronger antimalarial activity than lapachol.

Chemical composition and antiparasitic activity of essential oils from leaves of Guatteria friesiana and Guatteria pogonopus (Annonaceae)

Abstract Natural products represent a valuable source for discovery of antiparasitic agents. Here, we describe the antiparasitic activity from essential oils extracted from leaves of Guatteria friesiana (EOGF) and Guatteria pogonopus (EOGP) (Annonaceae). The essential oils were obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC/MS and GC-FID. The sesquiterpenes are more abundant in both essential oils. G. friesiana are dominated by β-eudesmol (51.9%), γ-eudesmol (18.9%) andα-eudesmol (12.6%). The major compounds identified for EOGP were spathulenol (24.8%), γ-amorphene (14.7%) and germacrene D (11.8%). The essential oils demonstrated potent trypanocidal and antimalarial activities with values of IC50 lower than 41.3 μg/mL. EOGF also inhibits the proliferation of amastigotes. In addition, we identified significant ultrastructural alterations induced by the essential oils, especially in the cell membrane, Golgi complex, endoplasmatic reticulum and mitochondria. The results presented herein reinforce the potential of other members of this family for search of antiparasitic compounds.

Correlation between DNA/HSA-interactions and antimalarial activity of acridine derivatives: Proposing a possible mechanism of action

Acridines are considered an important class of compounds due to their wide variety of biological activities. In this work, we synthesized four acridine derivatives (1-4) and evaluated their biological activity against the Plasmodium falciparum W2 line, as well as studied the interaction with ctDNA and HSA using spectroscopic techniques and molecular docking. The acridine derivative 2 (IC50 = 0.90 ± 0.08 μM) was more effective against P. falciparum than primaquine (IC50 = 1.70 ± 0.10 μM) and similar to amsacrine (IC50 = 0.80 ± 0.10 μM). In the fluorescence and UV-vis assays, it was verified that the acridine derivatives interact with ctDNA and HSA leading to a non-fluorescent supramolecular complex formation. The non-covalent binding constants ranged from 2.09 to 7.76 × 103 M-1, indicating moderate interaction with ctDNA. Through experiments with KI, fluorescence contact energy transfer and competition assays were possible to characterize the main non-covalent binding mode of the acridines evaluated with ctDNA as intercalation. The binding constants obtained showed a high linear correlation with the IC50 values against the antimalarial activity, suggesting that DNA may be the main biological target of these molecules. Finally, HSA interaction studies were performed and all evaluated compounds bind to the site II of the protein. The less active compounds (1 and 3) presented the highest affinity to HSA, indicating that the interaction with carrier protein can affect the (bio)availability of these compounds to the biological target.

Ferns and lycophytes from a fragment of Atlantic forest in the Serra da Jiboia, Bahia, Brazil

A floristic survey of ferns and lycophytes from an area of Atlantic Rain Forest in the semi-arid region is presented. The Serra da Jiboia is a small set of hills which hosts several vegetation types: caatinga at the base, wet forests on the slope and campos rupestres (rocky fields) on the top; this is one of the prioritary areas for biodiversity conservation of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Field trips to collect material were carried out monthly, between 2009 and 2010. The specimens are deposited in HUEFS. A total of 97 species, in 51 genera and 22 families, were found; Elaphoglossum iguapense , E. itatiayense e Pecluma sicca are recorded for the first time from Northeast Brazil. Identification keys to families and species, as well as comments and geographic distribution are presented.